Local Companies Help Middle River Family Get Wheelchair-Accessible Van
MIDDLE RIVER, Md. (WJZ) -- In September, WJZ's Denise Koch shared the story of a Middle River woman facing unbelievable challenges. Karen Mullins is the sole caregiver for a severely-handicapped son and granddaughter. But she was diagnosed with incurable cancer, making every day even harder for the family.
Mullins asked for help, but not a miracle: all she wanted was a wheelchair-accessible van.
Her 10-year-old granddaughter Mia cannot walk and is visually and mentally impaired. Brain cancer left her son Steven, 33, mentally disabled. In April, Karen got her own diagnosis: multiple myeloma.
MORE: Friends Raise Funds For Middle River Family To Get Wheelchair Accessible Van
Crystal Snowden saw the family's story on WJZ and knew she needed to help.
"I just knew somehow, some way, I had to make something happen for this family," she said.
Snowden also has a severely handicapped child and knows how dangerous it is for Mia to be going in and out of her wheelchair and car seat.
"Getting them in and out manually, you can actually hurt them," Snowden. "They need to be in that chair at all times."
Call it chance or fate: Snowden works at Total Mobility Services, a company that provides vehicles for the physically handicapped. She went searching and found a Dodge van that was perfect for the Mullins family.
A GoFundMe page for the Mullins family has raised more than $17,000, but the van cost $40,000. So Total Mobility gave it at a cost, BraunAbility converted it and State Farm and Brandl Financing picked up the rest.
"This is a lot of people coming together to make something happen. Thank you," Karen said, tearing up.
Gratitude comes easily for Karen, who's found a friend in Crystal.
A red ribbon, a little chicken lunch to celebrate what for this family must feel like a holiday miracle.
"This just proves that there's a lot of good-hearted people out there that want to make a difference and they did. This is going to make a difference for us," Karen said.