Ridgewood Community Donates $62,000 To Help Mom With MS

RIDGEWOOD, NJ - Leslie Linker has a bright smile that lights up a room. Although she loves living in Ridgewood, she might not be able to live here much longer.

Linker, a 45-year-old mother of two, suffers from progressive Multiple Sclerosis. She is confined to a wheelchair and has a live-in health aide with her 24 hours a day and her husband left her. She was diagnosed with MS in 2003, three months before her wedding.

“I never thought I’d be in a wheelchair so soon,” Linker said, her speech slightly slurred due to her unable to move the left side of her body a lot. “I want to see my kids get married, but I’d love to be able to run around with them. My son remember when I could do that.”

Linker’s friends started a GoFundMe campaign last week that’s raised more than $62,700 to help keep Linker living in Ridgewood. She and her friends are trying to find her subsidized housing in the village with wheelchair access but can’t.

“We decided to step in and get the community involved,” said Whitney Klein, Linker’s friend. “I don’t think people were aware of what’s involved.”

The struggle for people like Linker is real, even in ”affluent” places to live like Ridgewood.

“People don’t realize that there are people who are living in places like Ridgewood who are struggling through no fault of their own,” Klein said. “We’re thrilled about the outpouring of support for the family.”

Linker has a 10-year-old son, Harry, and a 6-year-old daughter, Rand, who attend Sommerville Elementary School.

“We all love it here and my kids have so many friends,” Linker said. “I’m hoping I don’t have to move. I’m hoping I can stay here.”

(Pictured: Leslie Linker and her children, Harry and Rand)