Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a harder battle. – Plato
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| Payton and her dad. The photo is from her aunt's fundraising site. |
If you’ve ever wanted to help someone, now is your chance. This story tugged at my heart like very few do.
There’s a beautiful little four-year-old girl and her family in Lower Sackville, Nova Scotia that need our help.
Payton Given has spastic cerebral palsy. Not that the disease is enough, but she also recently lost her mother – Amy – to a blood disorder less than a year ago. Amy was 34.
When Amy died she left behind her husband, Brad, an older daughter and a set of four-year-old triplets. Payton is one of the triplets.
The family had no life insurance. As you can imagine they are under significant financial strain from both Amy’s illness and Payton’s condition.
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| This is sort of what will need to be done to the Given's van to accommodate a wheelchair. Photo: TheCamerons, Flickr ccl |
Payton will be going to school next year and she doesn’t have a wheelchair. As her father said to CBC News: “It’s just too hard to carry Payton around.” (Peyton currently pulls herself along the floor with her arms.)
Can you imagine – a father having to say that. I know that her father would never say she is a burden but he must feel terribly alone. This feeling must be overwhelming having to be borne without the love and support of Amy. It’s heart wrenching.
The Given family was originally told by some local service organizations that Payton was too young to receive a wheelchair. They are expensive, and adding financial strain is the expense of retrofitting the family van to accommodate the chair.
To read the latest from CBC visit:
Given, a proud man as any of us would be, was reluctant to ask for help. But putting the welfare of his daughter first, he has reached out.
The chair and van retrofit will cost about $60,000. People have been amazingly generous, but the goal hasn’t been reached yet. One child even sold his Halloween candy to donate the money.
An account in trust has also been set up at the Scotiabank in Lower Sackville. If you call and mention Payton I’m sure they’ll point you in the right direction. Their contact information is:
Scotiabank, Lower Sackville Branch
518 Sackville Drive, Lower Sackville, NS
902-864-2228
Jennifer Crooks, the girls’ cousin, has also set up an online site to collect donations. You can visit her site and find out more at:
There is also a fundraiser auction in Lower Sackville on November 24. It is to be held at 300 Sackville Drive at the Sackville Super Bowl. Viewing will be at 6pm and the auction at 7pm. They are accepting donations of goods to be auctioned.
"It's just too hard to carry Payton around." We all need to help lift Payton and her family. Help if you can...
Nice Darrell. I think they are well on their way. It's so nice to see how the community has pulled together. I think she'll get a chair soon!
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