Angel Venegas, a 35-year-old guy with a passion for all things Marvel, the Game of Thrones series, and chatting with friends in online forums, has battled with the challenges of Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) his entire life. Since moving to Georgia two years ago, Angel has struggled to maintain his mobility, ultimately confining him to his bed.
When Assistive Technology Professional (ATP) Soch Kong was approached by Angel, he felt an overwhelming desire to help Angel restore his mobility and independence.
Realizing that Angel’s existing power chair was more than 10 years old and was inadequately fitted for his unique needs, Kong was determined to find a solution to fit his needs and would adapt to his progress condition.
After numerous trials and errors, Kong and Angel were able to determine an appropriate solution to fit his needs. A complex power wheelchair provided by Invacare, with tilt and recline, became the ideal solution. With the addition of adding lateral tilt, Angel was able to shift himself into any comfortable position of his choice, which proved to be a huge benefit because it helped to offload lower extremity pressure, maintain an upright head position, and improve sight line for driving.
Kong was elated to know he found the right solution for Angel. Kong went on to say, “Angel is an awesome individual! He gave me a lot of great feedback on what worked and did not work on previous chairs he is used to, allowing us to brainstorm creative solutions.”
For the first time in 3 years, Angel did an excellent job navigating tight corners, using the joystick, and safely entering and exiting his home.
To Kong, it was an honor to provide mobility freedom to another mobility user. Kong says, “I’m just a person helping people live their best life. It makes me happy knowing my work has a tremendous impact.”
Given the impact of Angel’s custom molded power chair, he is no longer bedbound and is happy to get back to texting, chatting, and communicating online with his friends!