Raise a Robotic arm for Maddy!

Hi there!

My name is Marnie Benson in Guelph, ON. I'm trying to raise funds for my friend Maddy Workman so that she can purchase a JACO robotic arm, which will dramatically change her life and her ability to live independently. The funds raised will be used to purchase this robotic arm: https://www.kinovarobotics.com/en/products/assistive-technologies/kinova-jaco-assistive-robotic-arm

Here's her story...

Help raise money for my independence!!!! My name is Maddy Workman. I am 18 years old and I have cerebral palsy (cp). I’m asking for your help to raise money so I can get a JACO robotic arm that attaches to my wheelchair and I control it with my joystick. I had a demo and just from the short time using it I could tell that it CAN give me much more independence. I have watched videos of what this arm can do and it is amazing and awesome!!! This robotic arm cost $40,000 and has been around 10 years but is not funded here in Canada. I know it’s a lot of money but if I didn’t think it was worth it I wouldn’t ask for your help. I strive to be as independent as possible and although I am very independent and can do a lot by myself there are many daily activities that I depend on other people to do for me, such as get a bowl of cereal, get me a drink,.... 

How many times have you been out and about when you stopped by Tim Hortons to grab a drink? I can’t just get Tim’s whenever I want unless I’m with someone because I can’t hold a cup, but if I had a jaco I wouldn’t have to rely on anyone to be with me because JACO could hold it. Living with CP, independence is a big deal for me because I don’t always like asking people to do simple things for me. I drop so much stuff and sometimes I can pick it up and sometimes I have to wait for someone to help me. For example, one day I was alone for dinner and I was opening a TV dinner and I dropped it on the floor. I called my grandparents who live 5 minutes away to see if they could come pick up my dinner so I could eat and go. If I had a JACO, I could have picked it up or prevented it from falling because I would hold the dinner with JACO while I opened it with my other hand. I have gone grocery shopping on my own and I find it difficult to get everything that I need because a lot of Items are out of my reach or too difficult to grab. I am also limited to one shopping bag of food that I can buy at once because I can’t push a cart or carry a basket. With JACO I would be able to reach and grab many different things and I would be able to carry a basket around the store. 

I am going away to college in September and will be living on my own where I will schedule attendants to come help me with daily activities. Having a JACO will help me live an even more independent life where I won’t have to rely on having someone around to help me. I know that the JACO won’t be everything that I need but I really believe that it can change my life by giving me much more freedom and independence! I think TOGETHER we can make this happen.  SO LETS DO IT!!!!!!

Here is a to a video about how JACO can change life's of people with disabilities!!! https://youtu.be/KAsIfe8xxGAhttps://youtu.be/KAsIfe8xxGA