We will be forever grateful to the Clara Abbott Foundation, who among the many requests for financial assistance from Abbott Labs employees selected ours to grant. Their generosity strikes us almost speechless and we feel forever indebted to them for such an expensive, lifestyle changing gift.
The decision over which vehicle to get was very complicated. The twins' wheelchairs are new models (Permobil K450) and are larger than many other types of chairs, and because of this we thought we would have to move up to a full size van in order to fit two of these large wheelchairs. In the end, Toyota came through for us with a new, larger size minivan.
We have the 2011 Toyota Sienna XLE with the Viewpoint Mobility Vision Auto Entry Conversion. It is the only minivan long enough for two wheelchairs of our size and wide enough for middle row captain's chairs for our oldest daughter, who is not in a wheelchair. Until Toyota unveiled this model a couple months ago, we were going to be forced to go with a full sized van, so we're thrilled that Toyota made the body a little bigger in the next model year. Coincidentally, our van is the first 2011 Sienna Vision conversion ever!
To summarize, here was the process we went through: we bought the van from a dealership in Detroit, and then it went back to the Toyota factor to be gutted. They removed all the rear seating, lowered the floor, relocated the fuel tank, and added an automatic ramp to the rear of the van along with a lot of electrical components (buttons, buzzers, alarms, remote switches). Then the van was shipped here to Phoenix to the Ability Center, who patiently customized the rest of the interior (wheelchair-to-floor locking mechanisms, for one) based on the measurements of our particular wheelchairs.
This process took about three months, which is actually a pretty good turnaround considering the vastness of the project, if you ask me. And this van is top of the line. There was no luxury spared. We are so, so lucky. I mean, it's really all about the kids and meeting their unique needs and with dignity, but it doesn't hurt that we also have been afforded such a gift that even the parents feel pampered!
