4 disabled Valley residents vy for accessible vehicle, equipment to make life easier

NILES

Kim McGann and her daughter, Mindy, face their challenges by relying on each other.

Now they need help from the public to overcome their latest hurdle.

Mindy, a 17-year-old Niles McKinley High School honor roll student, has cerebral palsy and seizure disorder. Her mom gets her around in an aging vehicle with a heavy, collapsible wheelchair ramp.

Mindy and three other local people are vying to win one of three accessible vehicles being awarded by the National Mobility Equipment Dealers Association, a nonprofit group that advocates for the disabled.

The contest is part of National Mobility Awareness Month, which is May. Sponsors team up each year to give “Local Heroes” in the U.S. and Canada a chance to win a vehicle and adaptive equipment to make life easier.

Other “Local Heroes” in the running are: Tommy Morris, 33, of Youngstown, who has cerebral palsy; Kathie Bates, 52, of Hermitage, Pa., who was paralyzed in a car accident; and David Brys, of Cortland, a retired physician.

“Winning this contest would be life changing,”Kim said. “It’s so hard to get her around, especially as she gets older.”

As a single parent, Kim said Mindy’s care falls to her and can be challenging since they have a 2001 van with 205,000 miles on it.

Kim became a foster parent to Mindy at birth and adopted her in 2002. She called Mindy her “sunshine”and said she’s enriched her life in ways that can’t be measured.

Read more about this devoted mom and the other candidates in Saturday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.