Couple Didn't Have Funds For A Wheelchair, So They Built One For Their Baby

This little girl is taking the wheel.

When Evelyn Moore was 4 months old, she was diagnosed with a spinal tumor, underwent eight rounds of chemotherapy and became paralyzed from the arms down.

Because the couple was so consumed with their daughter’s health issues during her treatments, they never thought to get insurance to cover the cost of a wheelchair, Evelyn’s mother, Kim, told ABC News.

Determined to give their daughter the freedom of mobility, Evelyn’s parents researched alternative options.

Evelyn’s mother eventually came across a do-it-yourself wheelchair for babies on Pinterest and asked her husband, Brad, if he could make it. He crafted the wheelchair with a Bumbo chair, cutting board casters and small wheels from a children’s bike. It cost about $100 to make.

Now, Evelyn, who is 13 months, knows how to go forward, backward and make turns in her personalized chair, Moore told The Canadian Press. The little girl is so fast that her mom even put a speed bump in their living room to slow down their feisty, little freewheeler.

“She’s pretty fearless,” Moore told ABC News. “She’ll go in her wheelchair on the top of a hill, let go and put her hands in the air, then catch herself when she gets to the bottom.”

Most importantly, the wheelchair allows Evelyn to be truly independent.

Evelyn’s dad is also pretty proud of his daughter and told the Canadian Press that he wants her to grow up knowing that she can do anything.

“Nothing can stop her,” he said.