New wheelchair for a better life

*English below

Astronomske cijene invalidskih kolica čine normalno kretanje luksuzom. Osobe s invaliditetom većinu svog vremena provode upravo u kolicima te je za kvalitetniji i lakši život od krucijalne važnosti za njihovo zdravlje u kakvim se kolicima voze. Andreja i Matej dvoje su ljudi s dijagnosticiranom cerebralnom paralizom zbog kojih smo pokrenuli ovu kampanju. Divni mladi studenti, koji ne dozvoljavaju da ih njihova dijagnozda spriječi u svakodnevnom normalnom životu. Nadamo se da ćete nam pomoći doći do cilja i zajedno skupiti dovoljno da njihov život učinimo ljepšim.

Ova godina je svima prepuna izazova i puna prilagodbi. Tim riječima bismo opisale i život osoba s invaliditetom. Gotovo svaka osoba s invaliditetom se suočava sa gomilu predrasuda, stereotipa, iskrivljenjih mišljenja da nešto ne mogu napraviti, diskriminacije, neprilagođene infrastrukture, neadaptivnih pomagala i slično... Gotovo svaka osoba s invaliditetom se bavi sasvim uobičajenim svakodnevnim aktivnostima. Studiraju, rade, treniraju, druže se s obitelji i prijateljima... No, kako bi lakše, brže i kvalitetnije obavljali svakodnevne obaveze na tom putu im se često nalazi prepreka zvana NEADEKVATNO POMAGALO.

Nažalost, adekvatna invalidska kolica koštaju oko 50 tisuća kuna što je besramno skupo za nešto što je potreba SVIH osoba s invaliditetom!

Stoga, želimo uz vašu pomož razveseliti dvoje mladih ljudi kupnjom novih kolica. Pa upoznajmo ih!

Andreja Vuljević je prekrasna djevojka puna životnih ciljeva i aspiracija. Studira komparativnu književnost, trenira judo te voli izlaziti sa prijateljima. Zbog cerebralne paralize, invalidska kolica su joj neophodna za svakodnevni život. Ističe kako si financijski ne može priuštiti pomagalo koje je u potpunosti prilagođeno njenim potrebama te to narušava njezino i fizičko, ali i psihičko zdravlje. Želja joj je imati lagana kolica napravljena prema njezinim dimenzijama kako bi bez problema mogla odrađivati svakodnevne obaveze.

Matej Malešević je student informacijskih tehnologija na američkom fakultetu RIT u Zagrebu. Strastveni je ljubitelj književnosti i pub kvizova. Voli izlaziti i putovati te ističe kako ne dopušta da ga cerebralna paraliza definira kao osobu i sputava u stvarima koje voli raditi. Međutim, često mu je teško gurati teška i glomazna kolica te njegovo kretanje u velikoj mjeri ovisi o drugima. Da bi mogao biti čim samostalniji, brže obavljati svakodnevne obaveze i nesmetano uživati u stvarima koje voli, potreban mu je elektromotorni nastavak koji manualna kolica pretvara u elektromotorna.

Vjerujemo da ćemo uz Vašu pomoć uspjeti dostići ovaj cilj i razveseliti Andreju i Mateja novim kolicima! HVALA <3

***Ovu kampanju su pokrenule dvije prijateljice, Renata i Marija, koje su se prije nekoliko godina slučajno upoznale na Instagramu. Tijekom svog rada na Wings for Life World Run utrci, Renata je bila u potrazi za inspirativnim ljudima s ozljedama kralježničke moždine te je naišla na Marijin profil. Nakon što je nedavno Marija na svom instagram profilu objavila post o važnosti adekvatnog pomagala, javila joj se Renata sa željom da kupi nekome kolica i razveseli ga. Međutim, svjesna da to ne može učiniti sama, udružile smo snage, pronašle prave ljude te vjerujemo da ćemo ih zajedno s Vama uspjeti razveseliti!***

New Wheelchair for a Better Life

This year has been a great challenge for us all and it has required us to adapt like never before. For people with disabilities, this could be a description of life in general. Nearly every person with a disability/disabilities faces a litany of prejudice, stereotypes, warped opinions of their abilities, discrimination, inadequate aids etc., but it’s not all bad! Nearly all of them do completely normal, everyday stuff… They study, work, do sports, hang out with family and friends etc. One of the most common and annoying obstacles they face and that stops them from completing their daily activities faster and more efficiently are INADEQUATE AIDS.

As you may know, having a wheelchair that fits them greatly increases a person’s quality of life. Since people with disabilities spend most of their day in a wheelchair, the wheelchair has to be of the right size and comfortable enough as to allow them easier movement and a higher quality of life. Just think of the pain and discomfort of sitting for any longer than three hours straight. You must want your chair to be as comfortable as possible so your back, neck and shoulders wouldn’t hurt. People with disabilities complete most of their activities in this exact position in their wheelchair and we don’t even have to stress how important it is to their health that their wheelchair be as lightweight, as comfortable and as nimble as possible. Unfortunately, a fitting wheelchair can cost up to 7.000€. This is a shamelessly high price for something that’s a basic need of ALL people with disabilities!

Hence, with your help, we want to make two young people happy, buying them both a new wheelchair. So, let’s meet them!

Andreja Vuljević is a wonderful girl with loads of life goals and aspirations. She is studying comparative literature, practices judo and likes going out with friends. She suffers from cerebral palsy, making a wheelchair absolutely essential to her daily life. She would like to stress she financially can’t afford a wheelchair that would fully fit her needs, and this impairs her health physically, but also mentally. She wishes she had a lightweight wheelchair custom-made for her that would allow her to complete her daily activities without facing needless problems.

Matej Malešević is an IT student at the American college RIT (Rochester Institute of Technology) in Zagreb. He enjoys literature and pub quizzes. He also likes travelling and going out and stresses that he doesn’t allow the cerebral palsy he suffers from to define him as a person and stop him from doing things he likes. However, he often finds it difficult to drive his heavy and bulky wheelchair and often depends on others in terms of moving around. For him to be able to be as independent as possible, complete his daily activities quickly and enjoy the things he likes unobstructed, he needs an electrical add-on (motor) that easily and quickly turns a manual wheelchair into a motorized one.

We believe that, with your help, we will manage to reach our goal and make Andreja and Matej happy with new wheelchairs! THANK YOU <3

***This campaign was launched by two friends, Renata and Marija, who met on Instagram a few years ago by complete chance. While working on the Wings for Life World Run race, Renata was looking for inspiring people with spinal cord injury and stumbled upon Marija’s profile. After Marija recently posted on her profile about the importance of an adequate aid, Renata reached out with a wish to buy a wheelchair for someone and make them happy. However, we realise we can’t do it alone. We joined forces, found the right people and we believe that, with your help, we will manage to make them happy! ***