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WATCH: Freedom returned to Lower Mainland amputee thanks to ramps built by volunteers

Jean Moulton’s mobility has been given a boost by the weekend project.

Langley’s Jean Moulton finally has wheelchair ramps on her manufactured home, thanks to a group of Good Samaritans.

On Saturday, a work crew arrived and assembled ramps both inside and outside Moulton’s home.

“I thought it was amazing that the guys did that,” Moulton said.

The double amputee uses a wheelchair or scooter to get around much of the time.

When she moved from an apartment in Langley City to her Brookswood home, she had hoped to use a government program to fund the ramps.

But lengthy delays with the paperwork led to a big disappointment in August – Moulton put in her request only to be told that the $5 million in funding for the Home Adaptation for Independence (HAFI) program had run out for the year.

She wouldn’t be able to apply again until spring of next year.

That would have left Moulton struggling up and down the four steps of her home on a prosthetic leg and with one arm for support. She said it took her up to four minutes to get down four steps.

After Moulton’s story appeared in the Langley Advance, Daniel Fedosenko of Mr. Home Inspector and contractor Shawn Reid saw the story and decided to help out.

READ MORE: Volunteer crew ready to build wheelchair ramps for Langley amputee

READ MORE: Lack of government funding leaves Langley double-amputee struggling

They pulled together materials and a crew and arrived on Saturday. They have wrapped up almost all the needed work. All that remains to do outside is to put down a no-slip coating so the ramp will be easier to navigate when wet.

“It’ll be a lot better for me going out,” said Moulton, a member of Langley Pos-Abilities, a group that helps locals with disabilities.

She said she’s fortunate to be helped, but worried about the HAFi program or its successor next year, and other people who were denied funding.

“I feel it could happen to everybody or anybody that applied for it,” she said.

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mclaxton@langleyadvance.com

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Matthew Claxton

About the Author: Matthew Claxton

Raised in Langley, as a journalist today I focus on local politics, crime and homelessness.
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