A mother and son who were dumped by HandyDART over a new wheelchair policy will soon be able to ride the bus again.
The Richmond News told last week how Milly Venus, 70, and her wheelchair-using son Terry, 51, — who’s had multiple sclerosis since he was 18 — were only two minutes into their journey to Vancouver General Hospital when the driver was forced to do a U-turn.
The mortified driver was ordered over the radio by dispatch to take the Venus family straight back to their Thompson neighbourhood condo because Terry’s lighter, transit wheelchair didn’t meet HandyDART’s new requirements for transportation.
The decision left the mother and son upset and in tears, fearful of missing a long-awaited specialist doctor’s appointment.
However, since we reported the story, Milly, who, as well as being the sole, full-time care-giver for her son, is a part-time custodian at the Ukrainian Community Centre in Richmond, has been inundated with messages of support and offers of mobility devices from strangers.
The News also received several calls from people offering to raise money for a new chair or donate their old one.
“I couldn’t even speak, I was so surprised; it’s been wonderful, everyone has been so kind,” Milly told the News on Monday.
“It’s comforting to know so many people out there care and that we’re not alone. I never expected this kind of reaction at all.
“The phone has not stopped ringing with messages of support from people I haven’t heard from in years.
“And others have been offering all kinds of help; someone wanted to give Terry one of those electric scooters.”
Before she could seriously consider one of the generous offers, the B.C. government’s local health department contacted her, saying they would arrange a new wheelchair for Terry.
“I’ve to get in touch with Terry’s social worker and they will get him all measured up,” said a delighted Milly.
Milly also got a personal, phone call apology from a manager at MVT, the firm that’s sub-contracted by TransLink to run the HandyDART service.
“She couldn’t have been nicer; she sounded genuinely concerned and gave me her direct line for future reference,” she said.
A HandyDART policy change on Jan. 1, made for “safety reasons,” meant it no longer takes clients using “transport” wheelchairs, which is what Terry has used for years.
However, neither Milly nor the driver of the bus had any knowledge of the change prior to the journey two weeks ago.
