Community fundraiser aims to provide wheelchair-accessible van for Bardwell girl

BARDWELL, Ky. (KBSI) — Before 10-year-old Kaylie Hammond can make the 12-hour roundtrip to see her medical specialists, her family has to carefully pack medications, feeding supplies, medical equipment, pillows, a stroller and everything else she may need along the way.

Now, a western Kentucky community is coming together to help make those trips safer and more manageable by raising money for a wheelchair-accessible van insurance will not cover.

Kaylie, a student at Carlisle County Elementary School, lives with multiple complex medical conditions, including polymicrogyria, hydrocephalus without a shunt, epilepsy, a PIK3CA gene mutation and CLOVES syndrome. She is nonverbal and nonmobile and requires specialized medical care and equipment in her everyday life.

Those closest to Kaylie say her diagnoses are only part of her story.

She loves music, listening to conversations around her, spending time with her family and making people smile.

Tammy Hammond, Kaylie’s mother, said preparing for one of Kaylie’s specialist appointments means packing far more than just an overnight bag.

“When we travel, we have a suitcase medication bag, we have her food, a cooler, her medical backpack, her stroller, and then we always try to take her pillows with us,” Hammond said. “Our current van is packed down.”

She said once everything is loaded, there is little room left in the family’s current vehicle. The lack of space can also limit what the family is able to do once they arrive somewhere because Kaylie’s stroller is often packed beneath other supplies and equipment.

A wheelchair-accessible van would allow Kaylie to remain safely in her wheelchair while entering through a ramp. It would also give the family more room for medical equipment, feeding supplies and other necessities.

“If it’s raining outside, we let the ramp down, roll her in, and she’s in,” Hammond said. “She would be able to get out. It would give us more freedom and we’d be able to go places versus just sitting in the car because we can’t get her stroller out because everything’s packed around.”

Hammond said the van would not just make travel easier. It would allow Kaylie to do more once the family arrives.

Community giving back

For years, Kaylie and her family have found ways to help others see Kaylie for who she is.

At Carlisle County Elementary, Kaylie and her family hand out crocheted animals and handwritten notes to classmates. Hammond said the tradition started after some children were unsure how to approach Kaylie because of her medical needs and equipment.

The crocheted animals became a way to start conversations and help children feel more comfortable interacting with her.

Now, Hammond said, classmates look forward to seeing Kaylie and often ask, “Where’s Kaylie?” when she is not at school.

That kindness is now being returned.

One of Kaylie’s teachers approached Hammond and offered to organize a fundraiser for the family. The fundraiser will be held at Carlisle County Elementary School, the same place where Kaylie has spent years building those connections.

The fundraiser will help the Hammond family raise money for a wheelchair-accessible van through the national nonprofit Help Hope Live.

Kaylie’s private duty nurse, who has cared for her for over a year, said Kaylie leaves a lasting impression on everyone she meets.

“She’s just sweet and sassy,” she said. “She’s got a big personality, and I just think she deserves the best.”

How Help Hope Live works

Help Hope Live is a national nonprofit that helps families facing catastrophic injuries and illnesses raise money for uncovered medical and medically related expenses.

Kelly Green, executive director of Help Hope Live, said families often spend months or years searching for resources before finding the organization.

Green said many families come to Help Hope Live after learning that insurance will not cover expenses they believed would be covered, including accessible vehicles, adaptive equipment, travel, lodging and other costs connected to long-term medical care.

Wheelchair-accessible vans are one of the organization’s most common fundraising needs, Green said, because insurance rarely covers them even when families need them to safely transport a loved one with complex medical needs.

Green said the organization also helps families raise money for much more than vehicles. Campaign funds can help pay for lodging during medical travel, mileage, gas, meals, adaptive equipment, home modifications, transplant-related costs and other verified medical-related expenses.

“Even with the best insurance, it’s not going to cover the mileage to travel,” Green said. “It’s not going to cover the gas to get to and from. It’s certainly not going to cover the food that you need to eat while you’re there. So it’s not just the vehicle, but it is all the expenses that come along with having this complex medical condition.”

Unlike many online fundraising platforms, donations made through Help Hope Live do not go directly to the Hammond family.

Instead, every contribution is deposited into a secure account managed by the nonprofit. Help Hope Live verifies each family’s medical and financial eligibility before approving a campaign and reviews expenses before funds are distributed.

Green said that means the Hammond family will not touch the money directly. Donations are held by Help Hope Live and used only for approved medical and medically related expenses.

“If somebody makes a donation to Kaylie’s campaign today, that money is not going to Kaylie’s family,” Green said. “It’s held by Help Hope Live and distributed only for qualified medical expenses.”

Green said the process gives donors transparency and accountability while allowing families to focus on caring for their loved one instead of managing donations.

Each Help Hope Live campaign is also assigned a dedicated fundraising coordinator. Green said that coordinator helps families plan events, organize community outreach, create promotional materials and navigate the fundraising process.

The goal, Green said, is to make sure families do not have to take on fundraising alone while also caring for someone with serious medical needs.

Donations made through Help Hope Live are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law because the organization is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit.

Since 1983, Help Hope Live has helped more than 25,000 patients and families raise more than $193 million for uninsured medical and related expenses.

How to help

A community fundraiser for Kaylie will be held from 4 to 7 p.m. Saturday at Carlisle County Elementary School.

Those unable to attend can support the family online through Kaylie’s official Help Hope Live campaign.

Donate: Kaylie Hammond Help Hope Live Campaign

Learn more about the nonprofit: Help Hope Live