I am raising this funding page for my boyfriend Kingsley Ijomah.

We meet 2017 November, at a party., same day as he had won an indoor rowing competition. We went out on our first date at Las Iguanas in Reading. From there we just hit it off. What he didn’t know was that I am a very active outdoor person. I love the forest, hikes, cycling, travelling to new countries and experience other culture.

In August 2018 I had a surprise for Kingsley. We went to Snowdonia and he went to the summit with me. Not in his wildest dream did he think he would be up there!

Kingsley was born in Nigeria in 1982. On his 1 year birthday, he got very ill and diagnosed with Polio, causing paralysis on both legs. Polio has never stopped Kingsley from things he set his mind to. I have never thought or seen him as a disabled person. He is the strongest mentally and physically & caring person I have ever meet.

Kingsley got his first wheelchair 2018, so he could be more independent. I saw that he gained a huge sense of independence that he has never had before.

A walk for you and I around town, browsing in stores or going to the supermarket for a few days shopping is nothing we really think of. For Kingsley it gets him quickly tired as he uses his arms and upper body.

After our trip to Portugal Lisbon December 2018, was the start for the search of extra wheel assistance. Every day we would be faced with a steep uphill struggle, we wanted to see all the places there was to see, but we couldn’t.

One evening we went out to meet a friend who suggested a place called Nooribar at Mirador. We stepped out of the tram and started looking for the right street. Soon we figured out it was a steep uphill all the way to the bar. Even with his athletic upper body he needed help pushing up the hill.

It was a struggle for both of us. Something that would have taken a non wheelchair user 5min max too us 25min.

It is not easy all the time. We come across obstacles daily that remind us that society is not built for people with a disability.

Metro/ Subway will have exits only with stairs!

The number of broken elevators we have come across.

Men ’s and woman’s clothing department at some stores is on level 1 with no elevator or escalator.

I started to google search for an extra assistance wheel for his wheelchair. An electric one. It is called SmartDrive and it is very popular. I believe this would be a massive help for his Independence and both uphill and for a long push.

SmartDrive is a lightweight, power assist for manual wheelchairs that allows you to go up hills and ramps, over thick carpet, long distances, and essentially, anywhere where it is hard to push, it is easy to attach and detach, lightweight enough to be taken for future training travels on planes.

With SmarDrive we can have the more "normal" experiences couples do, such as shopping, walks, runs, he can be more independent and not worry that he will run out of energy and miss out of things.

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.