Colton and Lindsey first met while attending Camp Barnabas and soon after fell in love and got married. Post graduation from the University of Missouri, they decided to make the move off campus and began searching for a new home. The rental market had many hurdles to overcome as accessible housing was difficult to come by. Both Colton and Lindsey use wheelchairs so accessibility wasn’t a priority, but a necessity.

Frustrated by the rental market’s lack of suitable options, Colton said, “We looked at rentals and the rent was going to be more than the mortgage payment. And one place I called said they had a roll-in shower and accessible kitchen but you had to go up three stairs to get into the house. How is that accessible? We decided we might as well invest and spend money on something we can modify.”

In March 2023, they took the leap and bought their first house. However, the home’s carpeting and bathroom fixtures soon proved to be obstacles. Seeking assistance, they turned to their Support Coordinator, Deanne Hoff, who helped them navigate home modifications through BCFR’s support.

“In the last year, they graduated, got jobs and purchased their first home together,” said Deanne. “The whole year has been nothing but change. They both had waivers, so we were able to do one massive project with funding from both.”

The couple’s home underwent significant alterations: carpets gave way to laminate flooring, manual doors were replaced with app-controlled automatic ones, and the bathroom was reconfigured with grab bars and a roll-under vanity.

Colton said, “The floors made the biggest difference because of my transfer device, it was getting hung up and nearly tipping over (on the carpeting) – staff were feeling uncomfortable, I was feeling uncomfortable.”

Deanne enjoys the unique situation of supporting a married couple, and as Colton says, “walking them through all of the complicated paperwork like social security, waivers and all that fun stuff that no one knows how it works.”