Fundraising page to buy electric wheelchair for Battersea man nears target

By Connor McLaughlin

A disabled man should finally be able to buy an electric wheelchair as a fundraising page nears its goal.

Matt Amos, from Battersea, is just £358 from his needed target of £1538 to finally purchase an electric wheelchair after years of relying on others and his own limited strength to manoeuvre around his area.

Katy-Louise Hicks, Amos’ friend since 2013, set up the page on his behalf after she had discovered Matt had recently left the flat to buy supplies from his local shop but became too tired to return home in his chair.

She said: “I found out the other day that Matt had ran out of milk and it was two days until his next visit [from his carers].

“Craving a cup of tea, he decided to go to the shop in his wheelchair and the nearest shop is probably seven minutes for able bodied people to walk, with a slight hill.

“It took him around 30 minutes as he kept having to stop to catch his breath.

“By the time he got there he was too tired to wheel back so he asked a stranger to wheel him back home.

“The stranger was happy to help, and Matt got home safely but when I found out I was horrified.

“It could have been a very different story.”

In 2015 Matt was left with permanent brain damage after he was pushed down in Clapham by an unknown person which put Matt into a week-long coma.

After months of being transferred to multiple hospitals and care centres, he was left unable to control one half of his body and with limited brain capacity, which resulted in his struggle to read and write.

Before  the accident Amos had been an outdoorsy person who enjoyed going on hikes with his son, whom he still sees every week, said Hicks.

But he has now been left unable to venture outside alone due to his immobility and is left with only music and television as forms of entertainment. During lockdown he fell into a depressive state.

Amos hopes an electric wheelchair will bring some independence back to his life and allow him to venture out rather than stay inside all day, something he is very excited about as most of his friends and family live a distance away, leaving him feeling isolated and reliant on their ability to visit.

“When he gets used to using it, he can take himself around the corner to the park, or maybe even get on the bus eventually to his dad’s house or to go and see a friend,” Hicks said.

Mr Amos is now in great spirits and extremely excited to be so close to reaching the final amount.

Hicks said despite the awfulness of the incident she was amazed at his recovery – he is now able to stand for short periods and regained much of his speech and mental capacity – friends and familiy feared these might never return.

In less than two weeks the fund raised over £1200 which Hicks attributed to Amos’s amazing friends and family that have stepped in to help.

Both Hicks and Amos hope to reach the target in the coming week to get him out as soon as possible.

To donate, go to: https://uk.gofundme.com/f/2cf9t1hq40?utm_medium=referral&utm_source=unknown&utm_campaign=comms_9hmq+2cf9t1hq40