February 5, 2021
Claudette’s main source of happiness is spending time window shopping, getting together with her long time love and cruising the streets looking out the window.
Due to changing health needs, these important things were becoming less accessible when she could no longer safely transfer into the standard seat in the van. Since wheelchair accessible vans are usually shared between homes, this left Claudette housebound half of the time.
St.Amant Occupational Therapist Shannon Hargreaves recommended a Bruno valet transfer seat that could be used in a regular van. These are very cost prohibitive, an expense far beyond anything that Claudette could manage on her own, so all efforts were made to request funding from government funding agencies. Sadly, these requests were denied so her staff turned to St.Amant Foundation for help.
Thanks to your generosity, the Bruno valet seat was purchased and installed in the van and Claudette regained valuable mobility and independence. Even though mall visits are out of the question right now, she is still able to go for drives and, most importantly, have physically distant outdoor visits with her loved ones.
Claudette is grateful for the increased independence the power seat gives her. At 56 years old, she has been supported by St.Amant since childhood and was one of the first to move into a community home. She values the ability to get out into her neighbourhood without having to rely on Handi-Transit or van sharing and continues to find joy in these excursions despite the current COVID-19 restrictions.
It is your generous support that made this possible for Claudette. THANK YOU!