Hurricanes, wildfires and windstorms shattered the lives of these five United Spinal Association members. Our Ready to Roll program helped them rebuild.
United Spinal Association’s Ready to Roll program is unique in that it provides direct support to people with spinal cord injuries and other wheelchair users affected by disasters. Generously supported by the Craig H. Neilsen Foundation, it has replaced roofs, wheelchair lift-equipped vans, and power chairs. It has also cleaned up mold and provided medical supplies and housing assistance.
And perhaps most importantly, it gives recipients hope that they can go home, even if “home” is now someplace else.
Following are stories of five recent Ready to Roll recipients. To protect their privacy, only their first name is given.
Tanya N.: “We lost everything.”
This past January, Tanya N. kept a nervous eye on the news as the Altadena fires raged toward her home. Every year, California wildfires burn hundreds of thousands of acres, and she wasn’t sure how much time she had to evacuate.
Then her grandmother called. “She said, ‘You guys get here now,” says Tanya, 43, a paraplegic since 2013. “I said we can’t leave right now. We’re trying to book a flight, but it’s costly.”
Fortunately, Tanya decided to listen to Grandma. She gathered up her mother, brother and grandchildren, crammed them into her lift-equipped van, and hit the road toward Tallahassee, Florida.
There wasn’t room for the family’s bare necessities and her big, bulky power chair in the van, so she left it behind. She hoped they’d be cleared to return home in a few days.
While on the road, Tanya discovered that her entire neighborhood had been reduced to ashes. Later, she learned that some neighbors had lost pets and even their lives. It took months for the wreckage to cool off enough for someone to assess it and confirm the worst.
“We lost everything,” she says. That included her customized power chair that, in happier days, she used to race up and down her sidewalk with her grandson.
“So sad to say, we lost it all,” says Tanya.
Ready to Roll: “We’re here for you.”
Tanya applied for United Spinal’s Ready to Roll grant when her family was safe in Tallahassee. At first, she hesitated to request what she needed, but after speaking with a Community Support representative, she admitted that she needed her power wheelchair replaced, a custom mattress to help prevent pressure wounds, and a shower chair.
The Community Support team also helped Tanya with the down payment for an accessible apartment in Tallahassee. They’re working on furniture next, and possibly some help replacing the van that died soon after the cross-country trip, ferrying the family to safety.
It gives Vice President of Community Support Matt Castelluccio a sense of pride and satisfaction to help people with spinal cord injuries and similar disabilities recover after a natural disaster.
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“I can empathize with them because I know what it feels like not to know and to be denied by so many other sources,” says Matt, a quadriplegic. “And to say, ‘Hey, listen, we’re here for you,’ makes me proud to be part of our organization.”
Matt also thanks the Craig H. Neilsen Foundation, whose funding makes Ready to Roll possible. “With the help of the Nielsen Foundation, we can provide individuals with the resources to rebuild their lives after these natural disasters significantly impact them. Like Angelica J., who had been denied by so many. It is a privilege to help her and her children secure stable housing again, making all we do here worthwhile.”
Angelica J.: “I was living in a car.”
Angelica J. sustained a spinal cord injury after a hit-and-run accident when she was 16. “It was rough, but I still pushed myself to move forward,” says Angie. “Along the way, I have made some big accomplishments—receiving a few college degrees and having two children.”
Then came the California wildfire that incinerated everything she owned. “This was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to overcome, and I still haven’t overcome it all,” she says.
She learned about the Ready to Roll grant from an EMT and applied right away.
“When I got the call from United Spinal, I was sleeping in my friend’s car. She lived upstairs, and my kids were staying with her. Matt was an angel. He was very sincere and conscientious about my emotions. He got the ball rolling quickly and got me and my family a hotel room.”
United Spinal stayed in touch with Angie, ensuring she had the necessary medical equipment and supplies, and helping her secure a new home.
“I’m overwhelmed with gratitude,” says Angie. “I’m forever thankful for United Spinal and Matt. He was there with me during the darkest time of my family’s existence. He was always a phone call or text message away. I’m slowly but surely getting it together.”
“I have moments where I’m unsure that I can get things done. Losing everything made me appreciate life a lot more.”
Roderic M.: “My worst fears were brought to the forefront.”
On June 20, 2023, two days before his 34th birthday, Roderick M.’s car was T-boned by a truck.
“I was in the back seat of my friend’s car, headed home to visit my mother in Houston. Initially, they couldn’t find my body, but eventually found me underneath the driver’s seat between the seat and the floor. Once at the hospital, I underwent two spinal cord surgeries and suffered near-fatal hematoma,” says Roderic.
“After I woke up, the doctors asked me if I wanted to live like this in front of my entire family. I knew I had to show the world and my family what God could do. I had to survive,” he says.
While first adjusting to his injury, he found United Spinal Association by Googling peer support groups for people with SCI. “I was so relieved there was a safe place for us. I signed up to be a member that same night.”
Then came Hurricane Beryl, the very next year, 2024.
“The hurricane brought my worst fears to the forefront, and that is not being able to take care of myself,” says Roderic. “Having a spinal cord injury is like living in the unknown sometimes. You must adapt and accept how life happens.”
Which is easier when the electricity’s not blown out by a monster storm, taking the air conditioning with it. “I didn’t know how the heat was going to affect my body or if I was going to be able to get to the hospital if anything happened,” says Roderic. “It made me go into survival mode. Being in my first year of recovery, it was not a good feeling.”
Roderic called United Spinal for help and got a call back from Matt the next morning. They chatted about their injuries, how Rod could get a peer mentor, and a local chapter Rod could join. Matt also encouraged Rod to apply for the Ready to Roll grant, which he did.
“My home is safe to live in again,” says Roderic. “We replaced the roof. Even the walls had to be replaced because of mold. Beryl was bad, but with the help of United Spinal, we could keep my recovery and health intact.”
John: “It seemed like we were always in crisis mode.”
John, 73, is a retired vocational rehabilitation counselor with two sons and a daughter. “Unfortunately, my oldest son sustained a spinal cord injury almost exactly two years ago. He was damaged by a pillar that fell onto his upper neck and head. He’s not done very well as far as adapting.”
Even with his education, John says, “We had a real quick learning curve. I learned about bladder and bowel management and pharmaceuticals specific to his needs, wound management, autonomic dysreflexia, those serious problems.” John joined peer groups to support his son, which is how he found United Spinal.
One other thing John learned quickly is how expensive a spinal cord injury can be. “I spent $60,000 on home mods. I bought a used wheelchair van and had a contractor tear out a bathroom and make it accessible for wet shower systems. I mean, it was just scrambling every day. It seemed like we were always in crisis mode. And then we have these storms going.”
John and his son live in Seattle, prone to windstorms that knock over powerlines and take out the internet. “This year, we experienced over 10 days with zero electricity or internet, and it’s become, frankly, a dangerous situation for us.” It has always been a problem, but climate change exacerbates the weather patterns, making the windstorms worse and more unpredictable.
After once more throwing away spoiled food and some supplies, John had to accept that the situation would not improve.
“I don’t want to move. I like the area where we live, and we’ve got the house paid for. What should we do? We thought we had to get a quality generator system to preserve our power during the storms. Because, you know, we can’t do this again.”
He put a down payment on a Generac system, applied for the necessary permits, and all else he needs to upgrade.
“The ball’s rolling and United Spinal has paid the money,” says John, referring to a Ready to Roll grant he received. “It’s amazing. It’s saving our hind end, I’ll tell you that. It’s a relief, a total relief.”
John is hopeful that once he and his son successfully move away from crisis mode, his son will begin to adapt to his disability. United Spinal will continue to do what it can to assist his family.
Navor: “Everything was finally coming together.”
“I’ll be honest with you, I made mistakes,” says Navor, a T10 paraplegic. “I was a drug dealer, and I went to jail.” He grew up in Naranja, Florida, to the south of Miami.
“I was sleeping on the streets, struggling to survive. When I was shot in 2009, I lost myself. I didn’t know who I was anymore. The last 14 years have been a journey of rebuilding, shaping myself into the person I have always wanted to be.”
For the past five years, he and his wife, Rachel, have strived to build a stable life. “Everything was finally coming together,” says Navor, a content creator and T-shirt designer. “And then the storm came. Hurricane Helene wiped everything out. We lost everything and had to start over again from square one.”
Navor’s apartment was flooded with four and a half feet of water. “Since September, we’ve only had about a week’s worth of clothes, just whatever we could fit in the back of our car.”
While waiting on FEMA, Rachel found information about United Spinal Association’s Ready to Roll grants. “We decided to reach out, and that decision changed everything.”
In fact, at first, Navor thought he was being pranked when United Spinal called him back. “I couldn’t believe someone was actually offering to help. But United Spinal is real. Because of this grant, we will finally be able to sleep in our home, have hot water, and take a shower.”
“It feels like a lifeboat has arrived in the middle of the storm, telling us, ‘Hey, we’ve got your back.’ I want to give everyone at United Spinal a hug!”
Being prepared for the unexpected saves lives. Ready to Roll helps wheelchair users plan for disasters, whether caused by humans or nature. Apply for our Disaster Relief Grant.