Many of you know Joe as the 6’5” goofball athlete who broke his femur sophomore year of high school playing football. Although that put him out for the rest of the season, he was back at it playing basketball only a few months later. Even with an additional knee injury and surgery his senior year, he was able to rally to serve a 2 year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to serve and teach the people of Belém Brazil and surrounding areas.
What some of you might not know is that Joe was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 2006. He did well until he got COVID in 2020. Since then his disease has become progressive and he can no longer walk and uses a wheelchair. March 2024 Joe decided it was no longer safe to drive with his legs. He initially thought he didn’t want to drive anymore, but as our baby girl started to grow into a toddler, he realized he wanted to be there for her. He wants to take her to school, parks, for play dates, and other activities. He wants to go to PT and OT to fight to slow his disease. He wants to relieve stress from his wife Rachel by being more independent and able to help. Joe wants to once again rally to get back to driving.
Last month Joe did a driving assessment with Driving to Independence, the company that Arizona DOT uses to qualify drivers with disabilities. Joe did well driving around the parking lot with the hand controls, and the driving instructor feels confident that he will be able to get certified to drive with hand controls. Unfortunately, she will only certify him to drive a vehicle that he can ride his wheelchair into.
Joe’s out of pocket medical expenses (those not covered by insurance) have exceeded $80k the last three years. Rachel has had to reduce her hours at work in order to take Joe to his appointments. This has made providing for the family difficult. Even with this, Joe still isn’t able to get in his recommended number of PT and OT appointments each week. Getting Joe driving would allow him to up his appointments and allow Rachel to work more days of the week.
We have decided to partner with the nonprofit Help Hope Live to raise money to fund a wheelchair accessible vehicle for Joe. Help Hope Live donations are tax deductible for contributors and will only be used to cover medical and related expenses.
Please consider donating to Help Hope Live in honor of Joseph Gary Christensen to help fund this goal. If you can’t donate, consider helping us do a fund raiser. Any ideas and help are welcome and greatly appreciated!
Please help spread the word to all your friends, family, and any businesses you know!
Thank you so much for the support!
With Love,
The Christensen’s
Joe, Rachel, and Baby Georgiana
P.S. Online donations are subject to a processing fee, so please consider mailing in a check if possible!
