On May 3, 2019 Tyler F. was snowboarding at Arapahoe Basin with friends when he caught an edge and “scorpioned” over his snowboard, landing directly on his neck. Tyler instantly knew that something was wrong; Tyler’s vertebrae was broken at C5, resulting in a spinal cord injury. Tyler spent fourteen days in the Neuro ICU and another 58 days for inpatient rehabilitation. Tyler and his wife made their dreams a reality when they able to purchase their first home shortly after getting married in 2017. It was everything they wanted – two stories, an open floor plan, a big yard, and plenty of room to grow a family. After his inpatient rehabilitation, Tyler and Sarah knew they had two options for bringing Tyler home – sell their dream home, or somehow come up with the funds to modify it.
Tyler and Sarah learned about the HBF and quickly applied and were hand-picked by Lennar Homes as their project Captain. The team began working on all new flooring on the first floor, created a barrier-free bathroom, and installed a custom curved stair lift and a straight stair lift. Not long after construction began, the couple learned that we were pregnant and expecting our first baby in September 2020. They quickly shared the amazing news with HBF and Lennar. The HBF, Lennar and Ascent Mobility did everything they could, even though COVID, so the whole family could be in their home to welcome their son, Axel Ryan, into this world.
“We’ve been home now for just over two months, and we couldn’t imagine raising our son anywhere else. We are forever thankful to HBF and Lennar Homes for giving Tyler a space that is not only functional and accessible, but still feels like home. There truly is no place like home, and we are so thankful to be back in ours.” – Sarah, Tyler’s wife
Can you give the gift of independence this Holiday Season?
A gift of any amount will truly make a life-changing difference to those we serve. To donate today, give online at hbfdenver.org. To increase the value of your donation, consider donating on Colorado Gives Day – December 8th. On this day only, the value of your gift will be increased by the $1M Incentive Fund when you donate online here.
