The CBBF + OIF Impact Grant Program
made its first round of awards this year to 5 deserving families living
with OI. Below you'll find a summary of the awards as well as some
pictures and excerpts from letters from the Impact Grant Awardees.
A Quick
Summary
Our
first recipients are a family of five living in Delafield, WI. Funding
of their application includes; carpeting through the main portion of
the house to provide a soft surface for crawling, and home
modifications to the bathroom to improve accessibility. Funding:
$6,379
Our
second recipients are a couple in their mid-thirty’s living in
Elmwood Park, IL. Funding of their application includes; a 2005 Ford
Prostar minivan, an AL690 Side-loading Hybrid Platform lift (to be
installed in the minivan), a wheelchair ramp for their home, and a
Quickie LXI Rehabilitation Wheelchair. Funding: $17,656
Our
third grant went to a family of four living in Rice Lake, Wisconsin.
Funding of their application includes; a 2003 GMC Savana minivan and
a lift, including installation, for the van. The family had also
requested funding for a ramp to be built in their home. During the
application process, the family was awarded a low interest WISH loan
to cover the cost of the home ramp. Funding: $14,700
Our
fourth Impact Grant was awarded to a single mother with two teenage
daughters living in Sauk Village, IL. Funding of their application
includes; the purchase and installation of a wheelchair lift for
their 1999 Chevrolet Express minivan. Funding: $7,590
Our
fifth award recipient is a 17 year old high school student living in
New Lenox, IL. Funding of her application includes; a new laptop,
home renovations to the kitchen to make it more accessible and allow
her to learn how to cook, and accessible toilet and shower seats.
Most, if not all, of the home modifications will be able to transfer
with her as she starts college in the fall of 2010. Funding $3,000
A few nice words
Before the install...
Dear OIF and CBBF Grant Committee staff,
I’m writing to thank you for the
grant money to install carpeting and remodel our bathroom.
A couple of years ago, I had two
spinal fusion surgeries, which greatly disabled me for a very long time.
In my recovery, my legs, as well as their tolerance, got weaker and
weaker. When I started working on getting in shape again, my left leg
broke. Which dislodged the hardware in my leg and caused infections, which
required a few surgeries after that.
My point is, to this day, I’m having
a very hard time getting my independence back. Ever since my back surgery
two years ago, I’ve been in a wheelchair almost all of the time.
The money that you will give us will help me on the path to
independence very much. The carpet, in my personal opinion, is probably
one of the most important aspects of the project, because I was crawling a
few years ago before the back surgery. I want to get back to that point
and be able to crawl around again. It’s really hard to crawl on the hard
wood floor that we have now. Whenever I would try to, the floor would
press into my fragile knees, and I wouldn’t be able to go ten feet
without being in pain, and exhausted, afterwards. But, now that we’re
getting carpeting, I won’t have to crawl on a hard floor anymore! Now,
I’ll be able to get back in shape more safely. I’ll be able to do
things on a soft carpet instead of a hard wood floor.
After
the install...
"The
impact grant allowed us to install carpeting throughout the main
part of the house so that I can work on regaining my ability to
crawl again without injuring or pain to my knees. This is something
I have truly looked forward to and I am enjoying it immensely! The soft carpet and padding make a huge difference for
my knees and I am eager to work on my crawling and other
exercises everyday."
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