The last time Camryn, who is 11 years old, attended in-person school was in first grade. In 2017, he was diagnosed with a neurological disorder that caused him to lose his vision as well as his ability to walk and speak independently. Since then, he has not been stable enough to go to school – until now.
Thanks to a new medical stroller, provided with help from Variety, Camryn headed back to school to start fifth grade this year. The medical stroller makes it safer, easier, and more comfortable for Camryn to take the school bus and to spend the day in class.
Lindsay, Camryn’s mom, says that Camryn’s favorite part of school is being around his friends again. She also shares that the stroller has made a big difference outside of school as well, and that they use it to go to critical medical appointments, and even to access their home.
“Camryn’s challenges make caring for him extremely difficult,” she says. “We recently moved and have a rock driveway, and a standard wheelchair would never make it out here! But, thanks to assistance from Variety with the purchase of the medical stroller, life is a little easier.”
The stroller also gives Camryn the chance to do his favorite thing – explore the outdoors. He and his family love to go camping, hiking and more, and the stroller allows them the freedom to go on adventures.
Even Camryn’s therapy dog, Chandler, loves the stroller. Chandler gets very excited when Camryn is in the stroller because he knows it means a trip outside!
The medical stroller has truly helped Camryn’s entire family – even his dog – to be more independent and to have fun, together. Thank you to all those who made this possible by giving to Variety!
Visit VarietySTL.org/Equipment to learn more about our Durable Medical Equipment program, which helps St. Louis-area kids and teens with disabilities, like Camryn, access the tools they need, like medical strollers, hearing aids, communication devices and much, much more.
