Help Repair Rebecca's Wheelchair Van

** EXCITING UPDATE !! **

Thanks to all of your generous donations, Rebecca's wheelchair van has been fixed and she is off again with Mark on exciting summer adventures! As the fundraiser raised more money than the cost of the van repairs, additional funds will be allocated toward assisting Rebecca with dental cleanings, her medication dispensary fee and gas for the van. As of this writing, the RBC situation has not yet been rectified however we are optimistic this will happen in the not-too-distant future. Thank you again from the bottom of our hearts!!

Original Fundraiser Details:

Hi, my name is Kristy Campbell and my sister Rebecca (who has become completely disabled in recent years due to progressive illness) is in need of funding to repair her wheelchair van, which is her ticket to a much better quality of life. Rebecca is in a financial bind due to her disability account recently getting frozen by the Royal Bank of Canada because, according to them, she is too disabled to access her own disability savings!

You can watch this video for more information shared by her husband Mark, but below is a brief overview.

Earlier in her life, Rebecca was brilliant and talented in many areas, playing guitar and organ in her teens, receiving a full scholarship to study fine art at university (she is a painter and illustrator), becoming a web designer and owning her own freelance company, and becoming a Distinguished Toastmaster in just three years of concentrated effort (it takes most people closer to 10 years to receive that award). She was also the most hilarious and entertaining emcee at my wedding!

Rebecca and I with our mom and grandma at my wedding in 2009

Her Health Struggles and Her Life Now

In July 2010, Rebecca suddenly felt some weakness in her legs. This condition began to worsen until she ended up in a wheelchair and eventually a nursing home.

Rebecca in 2013 in Rossport, Ontario. Hanging onto the railing to keep from falling back into her wheelchair. She made it up the stairs! (with some help)

Today she is fully paralyzed and unable to speak -- she isn't even able to drink a sip of water!

Her life now is centred around her time with Mark, who picks her up from the nursing home most days around 2:00 and brings her back around 9:00 pm. In the summer, they often go to the beach in Kelowna to watch the sunset while Mark strums his guitar.

Rebecca enjoying some recent sunshine

Without her van for transportation, Rebecca is basically unable to leave the nursing home. Then her days are spent sitting in a corner near a television with several dozen elderly patients with terminal conditions. She gets wonderful care at the home, but as you can imagine she prefers to spend her days with Mark rather than staring out the window!

The Wheelchair Van - Rebecca's Magic Carpet Ride!!

Rebecca's wheelchair van has been so wonderful for her quality of life, but now it needs repairs. As you can see from the pictures below, it has over 750,000 kms on it and bald tires! In addition, the rad recently started to overheat and doesn't hold any pressure and so it needs a new water pump and other repairs.

765,170 Kilometers!

Tires no longer safe.

Rebecca with her van, about to be whisked off for a sunset adventure!

The Royal Bank Story

In 2012, Rebecca set aside funds in a Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP) with RB. In Feb 2022, she was able to make her first withdrawal of the benefit, a total of $1,800. In Feb 2023, a different bank executive refused to release Rebecca's benefit. The reason? She could not speak and thus was not able to provide verbal consent. The manager explained a couple options that Mark could pursue, however they both entailed steep legal fees and complicated processes, neither of which are viable (practically speaking) for Rebecca's current situation.

Mark and Rebecca met with the bank a few more times and shared correspondence back and forth, but the bank would not relent. This has been incredibly disappointing for a few reasons: 1) She was able to do an initial withdrawal last year (so why the staunch refusal now?) 2) The bank is still willing to accept money into the account (as Mark explains in the video), suggesting they have discretion over its flow of funds and 3) Rebecca has been a long time customer with Royal Bank. They know her intention these past ten years was for Mark to handle her finances, so why wouldn't that continue after she lost her ability to speak? Mark has tried various approaches with them including inviting them to speak with Rebecca's and my parents and the Director of Care at the nursing home, to no avail. In the end, it would seem that my sister has become too disabled to receive her disability funds, and this simply isn't right.

Use of Funds

Rebecca and Mark are considering getting the RB story out there with more visibility, which may be what finally allows her to access her money (and also to spread awareness so others don't find themselves in this same unfortunate situation!) But in the meantime, Rebecca would love to have a functional van so she can get around and enjoy life a little during her remaining time here.

The requested funds will go towards fixing the van. If we get additional funds, they will be used for things like Rebecca's thrice annual dental cleanings (around $500/year), her meds dispensary fee (around $500/year), and insurance and gas for the van (around $1,800/year).

The ideal scenario would be the ability to purchase a newer, more reliable wheelchair van, so if sufficient funds come in, we will apply the funds to that project!

Here are the quotes for the work on her current van:

Rad and waterpump work.

New tires.

Thank you so much for taking the time to learn about my sister's story. If you are able to help out financially (or simply send prayers or well wishes), it would be much appreciated! ❤️