Wesley was born with an unexpected genetic condition that has greatly impacted his life called 21q21 deletion syndrome. He has bone marrow failure as a result, in which requires him to travel to McMaster Children’s Hospital every 1-2 weeks for platelet transfusions from our home in Niagara Falls. This protects him from potentially bleeding out, although he is always at risk because the transfusion’s only bring his counts up so much.

He also has a long list of other medical conditions that require fairly consistent follow up, and he often requires hospitalization for lung related troubles. However, despite all of his battles, he is a very sweet and joyous boy! He loves to spend time with his sisters, Savannah (8) and Aurora (6 months). He also loves Peppa Pig, The Lion King, The Beatles, and travelling to new places like forests and beaches!

Wesley requires a wheelchair that is equipped with his oxygen tank and suction machine. It’s custom to him and a perfect fit! If only we could transport him with ease- then Wesley may get to experience more of the world outside of appointments and hospital admissions.

Our family has gone down every single avenue trying to obtain a wheelchair accessible vehicle, however nothing has worked out for us. We realize that our only option is to acquire a used wheelchair van, which on average runs between $10-$20,000 for an older model.

It’s unfortunate that accessibility is so hard to achieve, and with the way the world is there is no extra room in our budget to save for one.

We are reaching out to our community in hopes that they can donate and share our fundraiser with everyone they know, in hopes to give Wesley the opportunity to *live* outside of our home and McMaster Hospital.

We are trying to achieve our goal as quickly as possible, and with viral season upon us it is vital for us to have appropriate transportation. He has already been admitted once for illness and it will not be the last.

Not only that, there are a long list of reasons we need it… a major one being it’s physically challenging. I cannot continue lifting him, it becomes dangerous for both of us, and I can’t even lift his wheelchair without help as it’s easily 100+lbs.

We are honestly praying and holding onto hope that our community can come together to help our family.

Thank you so much for reading, and considering our fundraiser!