I’m A.K., and I’m asking for help getting a compact, foldable power wheelchair that fits the reality of my life. I live with functional neurological disorder, which affects my motor skills and my ability to walk, talk, eat, breathe, communicate and move safely. My current wheelchair once felt like a miracle when I lost my ability to walk and realized a cane was not the right mobility aid for my gait disorder. I found it secondhand at a thrift store, and it became my main source of mobility. But over time, it has taken a lot of wear, and now it has rusty bearings, causes me back and hip pain, and is no longer truly supporting my needs. Recently, after being institutionalized in Arizona, I was forced to wheel myself despite joint issues and other health challenges, which badly injured my shoulders. Before I could fully recover, I was assaulted while trying to protect Flower from an attempt on their life, and I ended up with a broken wrist and more injuries to my shoulders and hands.

Flower has been my caregiver, and because I can barely wheel myself, so much falls on them. We were both legally unhoused when we met, and after a car accident totaled the sedan we were living out of, we became completely destitute until community and family came together to help us obtain our current home on wheels, a Toyota Previa. It has been a saving grace because it gives us more space to live in. In the old car, Flower had to strap my wheelchair down on the back using tie-downs on the trunk, but in the van we can load the wheelchair inside and still have plenty of room for our bed space. Even so, our living circumstances mean my options for a power wheelchair are limited to compact, foldable ones that fit our life and home on wheels. My lack of independence still makes daily life incredibly hard, especially when we are parked in public spaces and I have to rely on Flower for basic things like getting to a bathroom.

A foldable power wheelchair with an extra battery would help me move more safely, prevent more injury, and give me back some independence and dignity. It would also make daily life much more manageable because it could be loaded and unloaded more easily, while also giving Flower some much-needed relief and time and space to recover from their own injuries. If you’re able to help, please consider supporting my fundraiser. Any donation, share, or kind word means so much to us and brings me closer to more freedom, comfort, and stability in daily life.