Manufacturer to Replace Havre de Grace Teen's Missing Wheelchair

After learning that a wheelchair disappeared from Bay View Estates, the chair manufacturer is giving a new, $4,000 wheelchair to the Havre de Grace teen who used it.

Matthew, 18, has cerebral palsy and depended on his Convaid Safari Tilt wheelchair to travel distances without using supports.

Cerebral palsy is a movement or muscle disorder caused by abnormal brain development.

"His walk is very unsteady and he wears braces on both feet," said Sandy Schwartz, Matthew's mother. "He can't walk without supervision."

Two years ago, Matthew's family bought him the customized wheelchair from Convaid, a company based in Torrance, CA, so that he could go to summer camp.

Recently, Matthew's wheelchair went missing from the driveway in Bay View Estates where Matthew's dad lives. It had been placed outside on April 3 so Matthew's mom could pick it up.

Before the wheelchair, Schwartz said she would occasionally carry Matthew, who weighs 85 pounds.

"There are times I would go grocery shopping or to the mall and he would say, 'I’m done' and just sit down on the ground," Schwartz said. "He walks; he just doesn’t walk for a long time."

At one point, Matthew broke his legs and it was unclear whether he would be able to walk again, she said.

Purchasing the Convaid wheelchair cost several thousand dollars and required extensive discourse with insurance companies.

"Because he doesn't depend on it, they didn’t understand why he needed it to walk," Schwartz said. "I thought it was going to be a nightmare to get another one."

Schwartz said she called police after the wheelchair went missing, and last week, the Havre de Grace Police Department asked the public to help find it.

When Convaid saw the article on Havre de Grace Patch, representatives contacted Patch wanting to know if they could help.

“It didn’t look like the wheelchair was going to be returned anytime soon and we wanted to make sure Matthew would be able to return to his daily activities without having to wait months while trying to obtain a replacement,” Convaid President Chris Braun said.

Convaid offered to provide a free wheelchair to replace the one that was lost.

“We know how important it is for families with special need children to have a wheelchair on hand to help support their child,” Braun continued.

The replacement chair retails for about $4,000 and will be shipped to the family early next week, according Convaid.

"Even if I filed with the insurance company and tried to order a new one ... there's no way I would've gotten [the new wheelchair] in time for summer camp," Schwartz said. Matthew's summer camp begins in June.

The chair will arrive before the end of April after it is custom made for Matthew.

"It tips back... It has big wheels ... It has a tray and a canopy to go over it. It folds up like an umbrella stroller. It is just an awesome chair," Schwartz said.

Convaid contacted Schwartz and said the chair will be replaced exactly, though she said the company asked her to go online and see if there were any additional features she wanted to incorporate.

“I have goose bumps from all of this,” said Schwartz, who told Patch she cried on learning that Matthew would be getting a custom-made complimentary wheelchair.

“I had so many scenarios going through my head when I found out the chair went missing, and not once did I think that Convaid would reach out to us to replace Matthew’s chair," Schwartz said. "What a happy ending.”

See Also: HdG Police: Special Wheelchair Missing from Bay View Estates