Wheels appeal to keep dad
A Sunderland mum is fundraising to buy tougher tyres for her husband’s scooter which he relies on after being diagnosed with MS.
Peter Thompson was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis two years ago and now needs a mobility scooter to get around as the condition has progressed to its secondary stage.
But th e i n n e r tub e s o n t h e m a c h i n e ’s ty re s ke e p blowing and, with the scooter out of warranty, 42-yearold Peter and wife Emma, 36, are having to pay to replace them every few days at £10 each time.
But Peter has lost his job as a security guard since his diagnosis and Emma has become his full-time career since she was made redundant from her job with Deb e n h a m s du r i n g th e f i r s t coronavirus lockdown.
T h e c oup l e h ave t wo childre n – Kieran, 15, and 12-year-old Reece – so money is too tight to keep replacing the inner tubes.
Now Emma has started a Go Fund Me page in the hope of raising £200 to equip Peter’s mobility scooter with solid tyres, which will not burst, and allow him to maintain his much-valued independence.
"He is very dependent on the scooter,” she said.
"H e ta ke s a nt i - d e p re s - sants because he has had depression since the diagnosis and he needs the scooter to go out.
“He has gone from working 60 to 70 hours as a security guard a week to nothing.
"He used to ride a motorbike but since the diagnosis he has not been able to do that either.
"His mobility scooter is his one way of getting out and about.
"So we are trying to raise m o n ey to buy th e k i n d o f tyes that won’t puncture – it is £50 a tyre, so it is £200 in total.”
The couple got the scooter with help from the Multiple Sclerosis Society originally.
But s i n c e C ov id a n d a reduction in Government f u n d i n g , th e c h a r i ty h a s been unable to provide extra grants to cover the cost of the new tyres.
"He is going through inn e r tub e s eve r y t wo d ays , which is something we just can’t afford, so we are doing what we can to get tyres that will not burst."
To d o n a t e t o E m m a’s appeal, visit https://www. go f u n d m e.c o m / f /pz s v vb - wheels-4-life