Look out Villa Ridge, there’s a new driver in town. Five year-old Marissa Smith is the proud owner of a power wheelchair.
Marissa was born with Cerebral Palsy, a disorder of movement, muscle tone or posture that is caused by injury or abnormal development in the immature brain, most often before birth.
Heartland Independent Living Center (HILC) was first introduced to her in November 2012 when Franklin County Developmental Services contacted HILC staff to see if they could help Marissa’s family obtain adaptive equipment. The first item required was a feeding chair. HILC located one from another Center for Independent Living in Kansas City, driving 215 miles to pick it up, and delivering it to her home in Villa Ridge.
HILC staff discovered the family’s difficulty with Marissa’s entry into her home. Missy,
Marissa’s grandmother, inquired if it was possible to obtain a ramp for their front door.
Marissa’s preschool had loaned them a manual wheelchair, but access to the home was limited by the front steps. “I would carry Marissa up and down the steps to the school bus,” says Missy, “but it really tore up my back. I was off work for a month.”
HILC went to work in designing and building a ramp to Marissa’s front door. With labor
donated by the Chris Bohl Foundation of Rosebud, a 20-foot ramp was built and ready to use by mid-February.
The next determent to Marissa’s independence was that the manual wheelchair required a “driver” as Marissa could not operate it herself. Again, HILC was able to locate a used power wheelchair from another Center for Independent Living in Jefferson City that was just the right size for Marissa. The wheelchair was picked up in Westphalia, refurbished and delivered to her home.
Although turning in circles and lying backwards are currently her favorite options, Marissa is learning the ins and outs of using the power chair to its full capacity. In addition, her
grandmother says Marissa can now “ride bikes” with her siblings and neighborhood friends.
Both Marissa and her grandmother Missy are grateful for HILC’s help. “With Marissa getting taller and heavier, she also got harder to carry,” explained Missy. With the power chair and ramp, Marissa is now much more independent. “Independence suits her just fine,” says Missy. “Marissa is a real trooper.”