After 42 years of living with a bleeding disorder called hemophilia, my best friend of ten years tells me she’s diagnosed with cerebral palsy.

Spastic Quadriplegic Cerebral Palsy. She’s terrified as one diagnosed tells her to keep active and staying still is very bad (Hemophilia) while the other tells her that being too active will only progress her illness faster (CP)

CP is something that’s normally diagnosed within the first two years of life, but the hemophilia masked some of the telltale signs. It was only after the degrading effects of the disease started to effect her more did she asked questions at 40. Most people have time to build a support system and would have planned for what she is now at 42 facing. Complete immobility.

For the last 7 years she’s lived independently on a houseboat she bought on her own. However, mobility is now her biggest obstacle. Something that has never held her back.

She’s been live in nanny, a kids with hemophilia camp counselor, a preschool teacher and then a special education teacher aid. She’s cared for everyone around her all her life. Now she’s in need of help.

She can’t get up and down the stairs inside her houseboat. If you ever been on any boat, you know how precarious getting below deck can be for the fully able. This was her sanctuary, her favorite place in the world. Now it’s only a challenge daily. We are seeking help moving her to a disabled friendly forever home.