Mom Builds Wheelchair-Using Snowman to Put a Smile on Son's Face

Acord and Shook, courtesy of Rhonda Acord.

One mom in Hopewell, Virginia, built a wheelchair-using snowman to put a smile on her son’s face.

Rhonda Acord’s son Tyler Shook has Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a genetic disorder that causes progressive weakness and loss of muscle mass. Shook, 29, has used a wheelchair since he was 6, CBS News reported. He’s now reliant on a ventilator to breathe and has to stay in the house during wintertime. Because he has limited use of his fingers for driving his wheelchair, he can only go outside in warm weather — otherwise his fingers get cold too fast. But he still loves snow.

After this weekend’s blizzard, Acord decided to go build a snowman. Normally she builds a “classic” one and takes a picture of it to show her son, but this year she decided to do something different. She spent about two hours building him a snowman in a wheelchair.

Two snowmen, one in a wheelchair. — Photo courtesy of Rhonda Acord.

“[It was] basically something to make him feel like he’s a part of it,” Acord told CBS. “It was just basically to make him smile.”

The first stage of construction of the snow wheelchair, photo courtesy of Rhonda Acord.

Shook gave Acord a huge smile when she went inside and showed him a picture of her creation. Acord hopes the wheelchair-using snowman in her front year will remind passersby to think about people in wheelchairs more often.

“They are people just like anyone else,” Acord told The Mighty in a Facebook message.

A snowman in a wheelchair made of snow. — Photo courtesy of Rhonda Acord.

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Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy

Mom Builds Wheelchair-Using Snowman to Put a Smile on Son's Face