Last year, William Teemsma had an aortic aneurysm. After doctors operated on him, he awoke and found he was paralyzed from the chest down. To bring him home, there were major obstacles to overcome: on top of house renovations, William needed reliable transportation from his home in Mastic to his medical team in the Bronx—an hour and a half drive. For 8 months, William waited in the hospital while his wife, Vivian, set out to raise the money they needed. On top of the expense of home renovations, a wheelchair-accessible van would cost nearly $100,000.
William’s daughter set up a GoFundMe (an online crowdsourcing page) which got the attention of Channel 12 News who interviewed the Teemsmas. The community support flooded in. The GoFundMe raised a majority of the money needed for the home renovations, but when it came to buying the van, they were still shy of what they needed. There was nothing Vivian could do. She was so close to her goal, but she couldn’t take out additional loans and had already drained her savings.
“Everything snowballed from there,” says Vivian. “The GoFundMe page was very successful for the van, but we came up short, and people on the GoFundMe page were recommending different organizations. One of them was Bridge to Mobility.”
Bridge to Mobility Executive Director Gerhard Schmidt stepped in to help. He put the Teemsmas in touch with Bussani Mobility, an NMEDA dealer. NMEDA, the National Mobility Equipment Dealers Association, is a nonprofit that helps those in need find and afford transportation solutions to enhance accessibility. Gerhard was able to secure grant funding for the additional $5,000 they needed to purchase the van.
According to Vivian, “It was like a miracle. It really was. Everything just came together. We were able to raise enough funds to get the van for [William] before he came home. Which was amazing to us, because when he came home, he had his freedom. He was able to go out and about, which he hadn’t been able to do for eight months in the hospital.”
William has been putting the van to good use. In fact, Vivian tells us that “the driver’s seat is in my living room because he’s the only one that drives the van.” When he’s not driving to medical appointments, William enjoys taking his grandchildren down to the beach.
There’s no preparing for a situation like the one the Teemsmas had found themselves in last year, but with support from the community and the necessary last-minute funding, William is now able to travel with ease.
“Because of Bridge to Mobility,” Vivian says, “we have the freedom that we never thought we would after the accident.”
Join the Movement: Wheels of Change
Our work directly contributes to the strength of communities across the U.S. and Canada. With each person we help gain access to a life-changing wheelchair-accessible vehicle, we support education, employment, health, and the other essential pillars of long-term economic growth.
Please consider investing in our mission and strengthening Bridge to Mobility. Your support can make a significant difference in the lives of those with physical disabilities. Your contribution helps us provide last-dollar funding to support the freedom of children, veterans, caregivers, and families. Together, we can build more inclusive communities for everyone.
