Raiza’s story is one of a tenacious 43-year-old in the Dominican Republic. She contracted polio when she was seven months old, leaving her paralyzed from the waist down.
Though she has never walked, Raiza refused to let circumstances dampen her spirits. “You can’t miss what you’ve never had,” she said with a smile. “I wasn’t born this way, but I accept it as God’s will.”
Determined to fully live the life she was given, Raiza completed her high school education with the support of friends and family. She has been earning a living by selling food, coffee, and other goods out of the modest home she shares with her mother, sister, and nieces. The money she earned was not enough to buy her own wheelchair, however, so she would often borrow one, worrying that she might damage it.
Raiza received a brand-new wheelchair of her own from El Buen Samaritano Hospital, one of our local distribution partners. With mobility, Raiza can move around her store more easily, go to the market to stock up on items to sell, and help take care of her nieces while her sister is at work.
“Disabilities are not what limit us,” said Raiza. “We set our own limits by how we choose to see the world.”
Raiza’s story is a testament to empowerment through mobility, proving that a wheelchair can transform limitations into opportunities for independence and success.
