Wheelchair Accessible Van for Sarah
Donation protected
Sarah Jean is a happy, fun little girl with a terrifying terminal illness called Mitochondrial Disease. She lives in Warsaw, Indiana and enjoys swinging at the park, spending time with her nurse, and playing with her siblings. She loves riding the bus to school every day, and she describes second grade as "so much fun!" Her smile is contagious, and her perpetual strength has been an inspiration to her family and friends as she has defied the doctor's expectations for years now.
As Sarah gets older, it has become more and more clear that her physical limitations will be long-lasting. With her body growing bigger and heavier while also becoming weaker and less coordinated, her needs have become increasingly more difficult to manage. She is close to outgrowing standard car seats, and it's nearly impossible for me to lift Sarah out of the wheelchair on the ground and up into her booster seat in our current van. Her prognosis is grim, and we know that her weakness will continue to become more and more debilitating.
Because of this, Sarah's Mitochondrial Disease specialist at Riley Hospital has recommended that we buy a van that will allow Sarah to be wheeled right in and buckled up safely while remaining in her wheelchair, so that her almost 70 pounds doesn't have to be transfered from the wheelchair to the car seat, and back to the wheelchair again each time she enters and exits the vehicle. Our hope is that this van will be able to go wherever Sarah goes, so regardless who she is with (Mom, Dad, Nurse, Grandma)- the van will be with Sarah.
It's incredibly expensive, but thankfully there is a foundation that provides grants to "disabled persons in need who show a strong desire and ability to raise funds of their own towards the purchase." If we are able to raise most of the money for a van, we can utilize grant money to complete the purchase. We understand that this is a LOT of money, and we are so grateful for every contribution! Our plan going forward is to host a series of fundraisers over the summer in an attempt to raise enough to purchase the van, but we hope that this Go Fund Me page will be helpful to those who are too far away to attend but would still like to donate.
Please share the information about all of our fundraisers! Thank you for supporting Sarah!

As Sarah gets older, it has become more and more clear that her physical limitations will be long-lasting. With her body growing bigger and heavier while also becoming weaker and less coordinated, her needs have become increasingly more difficult to manage. She is close to outgrowing standard car seats, and it's nearly impossible for me to lift Sarah out of the wheelchair on the ground and up into her booster seat in our current van. Her prognosis is grim, and we know that her weakness will continue to become more and more debilitating.
Because of this, Sarah's Mitochondrial Disease specialist at Riley Hospital has recommended that we buy a van that will allow Sarah to be wheeled right in and buckled up safely while remaining in her wheelchair, so that her almost 70 pounds doesn't have to be transfered from the wheelchair to the car seat, and back to the wheelchair again each time she enters and exits the vehicle. Our hope is that this van will be able to go wherever Sarah goes, so regardless who she is with (Mom, Dad, Nurse, Grandma)- the van will be with Sarah.
It's incredibly expensive, but thankfully there is a foundation that provides grants to "disabled persons in need who show a strong desire and ability to raise funds of their own towards the purchase." If we are able to raise most of the money for a van, we can utilize grant money to complete the purchase. We understand that this is a LOT of money, and we are so grateful for every contribution! Our plan going forward is to host a series of fundraisers over the summer in an attempt to raise enough to purchase the van, but we hope that this Go Fund Me page will be helpful to those who are too far away to attend but would still like to donate.
Please share the information about all of our fundraisers! Thank you for supporting Sarah!
Organizer
Mindy Salmons
Organizer
Warsaw, IN
