Wheelchair Accessible Van

Dear friends and family, I have started a fundraiser to help my long time friend of over 30 years get a new wheelchair accessible van. Her van is 14 years old with ove 200,000 miles and is literally falling apart. I have known Melissa since we were 12 years old and we were the best of friends throughout high school and remain friends to this day. Melissa was in an awful automobile accident the summer of her junior high school year. It left her paralyzed from the waist down. Now, as bad as that sounds, let me tell you, it in no way slowed her down. Melissa kept up with her studies while in the hospital and was able to return to high school and graduate on time with her class. After high school she went to a vocational rehabiltation facility, took a business education course and becamse employed. She then, left her small town of Beatrice, Alabama and made Birmingham her home. She had a job, found an apartment, but had no transportation. She took a cab for almost a year until she saved enough money for a car. She has always worked in the field of helping individuals with disabilities. Her disability lead her to find a passion of helping others. In 1994, Melissa won the Ms. Wheelchair Alabama Pageant. She spent the year traveling the state, speaking of the barriers that people with disabilities face. This lead her to a program at UAB, known as Think First, a head and spinal cord injury prevention program. She was the head spokesperson for 4 years. Then, in 1998, Melissa purchased her own home, got engaged and married and soon found out they were expecting. She now has a beautiful 13 year old daughter. Melissa drove a car for 17  years, but the pregnancy along with the years of loading and unloading her chair in and out of the car had taken a toll on her upper body. This brought on the need for a van with a lift. She quit her job and became a stay at home mom. Now the van is just not safe. These vans can cost anywhere from 30,000 used, to 65,000 new. Along with so much support from friends, strangers and loved ones, they have raised 21,000 but, we need to raise more, and the quicker the better. It would be a terrible situation if her van completely quit. The radiator just busted yesterday, so it is in the shop again. To make matters worse, her husband, two weeks ago was diagnosed with alzheimers at the age of 54. This precious family is so dear to me and whatever we can do to make life easier would be such a blessing. The van is not a want, it is a necessity. So, I encourage each of you to please donate. There is no amount too small and it can be done in a minute using paypal. Also, would you please hit the share button so your friends can read her story also. Melissa, has a lot on her plate and I hate seeing her so worried. She needs all the prayers we can give to her, but, we also need to each give so that transportation is no longer a worry. Thank you so much. I know that some of my friends saw this fundraiser a while back. Since the goal was not reached, I wanted to do what I could to make that happen. Thank you so much, and God Bless. I will post from time to time as a reminder and don't forget, share, share, share!!