Wheelchair Minivan for Christian (Disabled Child)

John Soper organiseert deze actie.

Beschermde donatie

Fundraising for Rosa and Darryl Munn to purchase a Minivan that can be converted to carry a wheelchair for their Intellectually Disabled son, Christian.

Quick Summary:
Darryl and Rosa Munn live in southern Virginia. Darryl is a city bus driver for the handicapped and Rosa takes care of their 17 year old son Christian.

Christian has an Intellectual Disability (ID) and though he can’t speak, he is a powerful voice for Jesus Christ. They attend our Baptist Church ‘Happy Class’ and Christian preached in ‘mime’ at our last Easter play (video).

Christian also has a curvature of the spine. Last year his parents arranged for a surgery to have rods put into his back to help straighten his spine. The surgery was successful, but he was dropped in the bathroom during recovery by his Nurse and as a result, he’s now paralyzed from the waist down. Darryl and Rosa’s attempts at suing the Hospital for damages have gone nowhere, so now, nearly two years later, we’re just dealing with the situation in front of us.

Christian is a pretty skinny kid, but it is still a physically demanding task to lift him in and out of a vehicle into his wheelchair.

The good news is that the Community Services Board (CSB), who has been great to this family, will pay for a Minivan wheelchair ‘conversion’, which is between 10 and $30,000, but first, Darryl and Rosa have to own a Minivan, for the CSB to ‘convert’.

Our hope and prayer, is that you will donate to this GoFundMe page, to help us buy a Minivan for Christian. We think that a 2015 Toyota Sienna is old enough to keep the price down, but new enough to not have ‘used car problems’ right away, and it’s also an excellent candidate for wheelchair conversion. So our goal is $15,000.

Will you prayerfully consider donating to this cause and of course, pray for this family. We ask God to bless you and keep you.

Christian's story:

The Munn Family

Darryl married Rosa just a few years ago, trying to live out the American dream of owning a home and providing for a family. Darryl is a bus driver with the City, and has always had a big heart for the handicapped, picking up wheelchair bound customers from their homes and taking them to their destinations. He married Rosa, who had a son Christian, who is Intellectually Disabled (ID) and can’t speak. Darryl bought a small home in Hampton for the three of them and was just getting by financially with a mortgage and a car payment. We met them when they began attending our Baptist Church ‘Happy Class’ (a weekly adult Bible study class of about 50 Intellectually Disabled adults (began in 1981!)). Christian’s burning desire to preach and pray was a joy to all of us each Sunday, culminating in his chance to preach in ‘mime’ during the Easter Play as Lazarus, describing his joy when Jesus raised him from the dead (video).

Tragedy

Shortly afterward, Darryl and Rosa arranged for a surgery to have rods put into Christian’s back to help straighten his curved spine. The surgery was successful, but he was dropped in the bathroom during recovery by his Nurse and as a result, he’s now paralyzed from the waist down. Darryl and Rosa’s attempts at suing the Hospital for damages have gone nowhere, so now, nearly two years later, we’re just dealing with the situation in front of us. The family has suffered financially due to the many follow-on trips to the hospital in Philadelphia, hotel rooms and missed work. It’s tempting to dwell on the unfairness and anger we feel toward this situation, but many lawyers have told us, the chances of winning a settlement are just too small – little David versus Goliath, the giant. So the family moves on.

Family Support

The local Community Services Board (CSB) has been great, providing Christian with a Day Nurse for rehabilitation, a good wheel chair, a bed lift and in-home instruction so Christian can finish High School. His Happy Class donated and installed a wheelchair ramp, and we visit, teach and pray with them weekly. We also help Darryl and Rosa with financial planning and CSB discussions, during these difficult times.

Vehicles

Darryl has a vehicle, but also a lien on it. They’ve tried to get by, lifting Christian into their vehicle, but not only is it difficult, it has to been done carefully, to not

harm Christian. After several attempts to drive to the Happy Class at Church, they had to give up. They tried using the City’s wheelchair bus system, but the scheduling challenges and having to change routes to get to Church became too much. It was obvious they needed a wheelchair Minivan, not only to attend Church, but to simply take Christian with them anywhere, as a young man should be able to do. Not confined to just his house and where the bus routes will go. However, they were barely affording what they have now. Fortunately, they learned that the CSB will pay for a Minivan wheelchair ‘conversion’, which is between 10 and $30,000, but first, Darryl and Rosa have to own a Minivan, for the CSB to ‘convert’.

Using our contacts in the Happy Class, we researched Minivan conversions and found that not all Minivans can be converted and that one of the best candidates is the Toyota Sienna. We think that a 2015 Toyota Sienna is old enough to keep the price down, but new enough to not have ‘used car problems’ right away. So our goal is to raise $15,000. Hopefully with tax, title and licensing costs, and a little luck, we’ll find a good Minivan locally within this amount and hand it over to the CSB for wheelchair conversion.

Financing

The Happy Class leadership are managing the funds for this GoFundMe and helping Darryl and Rosa navigate the used car market and CSB van conversion processes. This also isolates their family spending and debt from these Minivan donations.

Please help Right this Wrong

Will you prayerfully consider donating to this cause and of course, pray for this family. They don’t want to dwell on the unfairness of this situation and the events of the past, and instead, we all just want to move forward, trusting that God will find a way for them to pay for this Minivan. God bless you and may God keep you. - The Happy Class.