Pawtucket twins with severe epilepsy hoping to win wheelchair van
By Bianca Buono
@BBuonoABC6
For one Pawtucket family, getting around can be a big struggle. Their 7-year-old twins have a rare, severe form of epilepsy and require a pricey wheel chair van. They’ve come up with a way to potentially cover the costs but need the public’s help to meet their goal.
Like many sets of twins, Brennan and Brody Smith of Pawtucket were born prematurely.
"We felt kind of relieved when we left the NICU thinking we had you know dodged a bullet and the boys had beat the odds and had really a wonderful stay but it very quickly became obvious that there was much more going on,” said their mom Alli Smith.
The now 7-year-old boys have a rare, severe form of epilepsy that limits their ability to walk and talk.
"They require a lot of assistance we have nursing staff in our house every day of the week and it’s a lot,” Smith said.
Their mom tries to make their lives as normal as possible, which includes taking them places like the park or the beach; but she’s hit a roadblock. The twins are growing and can barely fit in their strollers and car seats. So when she found out about a contest as part of National Mobility Awareness Month, she was ecstatic.
"We entered a contest through the National Mobility Equipment Association for Mobility Awareness Month to potentially win a customized wheelchair van,” she explained.
The vans cost upwards of $60,000, but Alli says it’s the only way Brennan and Brody can continue to leave the house.
The family has already received an outpouring of support and more than a thousand votes.
"We’re trying to rally our local community to help us do that,” said Smith.
Voting continues throughout the entire month of May. Here is a link to the contest page:
http://www.mobilityawarenessmonth.com/entrant/allison-smith-pawtucket-ri
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