Kicking Off 2021 the Right Way

Maren Nordhoy • November 29, 2021

We started 2021 in an extremely positive way by helping a fourth family, providing them with home modifications and a bathroom renovation. Maddie’s Miracles heard about this family (who would like to remain anonymous) from a local Berks County teacher who had become close with them over the years.


The family cares for their son, who was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy at a young age. For those who don’t know, Cerebral Palsy is a disorder that affects muscle movement, muscle tone, and posture, and is caused by damage to the brain before birth.


Living with this disorder brings certain challenges that the family and their son face every day, like toileting, bathing, and transferring their son around the house. Maddie’s Miracles was able to renovate their bathroom to make these daily tasks much easier.


We were able to widen their door frame and install a custom shower stall with a bench and grab bars for easy access and use. Not only were we able to provide this family with home modifications that make their lives easier, but we also gave them each a sense of independence they did not have before. We were so happy to finish this project and see the final results. Thank you to all those who have supported us along this journey!


No names are mentioned to respect the anonymity of the family.

  • Bathroom with a shower, toilet, and sink. A burgundy shower curtain, sunflower, and grab bar are visible.

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  • Bathroom with accessible features: toilet with grab bars, walk-in shower, and a sink.

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Family stands near a gray accessible van with ramp deployed in a wooded area.

Enzo’s Miracle Van

By Maren Nordhoy • July 22, 2025
Enzo’s story is a beautiful reminder of the power of perseverance, the importance of accessibility, and the joy that shines through even the toughest challenges. Maddie’s Miracles is proud to have played a small part in helping Enzo and his incredible family continue their journey with hope and strength.
Group of people standing by a blue car on a snowy street, smiling.

Christmas Eve Miracle

By Maren Nordhoy • July 21, 2025
Alesia is 12 years old and has had Cerebral Palsy since birth it has been an extreme challenge simply managing the day-to-day tasks and activities. Alesia has no control or support of her lower body. She does have an adaptive car seat. However, it causes her extreme discomfort. The task of simply transporting her to the numerous appointments she has throughout the week can be heart-aching to watch. We have had to cancel appointments and cancel on family gatherings simply because Alesia is too uncomfortable to leave the house without her chair. The vehicle will help us tremendously, not only in transporting her to and from her appointments, but will also allow us to bring Alesia’s wheelchair along in hopes she will be eager to head out and do more.  Cerebral palsy (CP) is a group of neurological disorders that affect movement, muscle tone, and posture. It is caused by damage to the developing brain, often before or during birth, or in early infancy. The condition can vary in severity, with some individuals experiencing mild coordination issues, while others may have significant physical and intellectual challenges. Symptoms can include difficulty with walking, speaking, and fine motor skills. Although there is no cure for cerebral palsy, treatments such as physical therapy, medication, and assistive devices can help improve quality of life and independence.
Family poses in living room; daughter in wheelchair, parents smile, neutral colors, sunny.

Niya’s “Zipline”

By Maren Nordhoy • January 16, 2025
Niya is a happy girly girl who loves pink and spending time with her family. She has a large family of eight brothers and sisters who always make her smile and laugh. She loves funny noises, listening to The Boxcar children’s books, and loves being outside. Niya faces lots of challenges with her mental and physical disabilities. She was born prematurely at 29 weeks with peri ventricular leukomalacia. This is damage to the brain that resulted in spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy and cortical visual impairment. She currently uses a manual wheelchair, a stander; to help her stand and bear weight, a gait trainer; to help her take steps, an activity chair; for feeding and participating in family time, a handicap accessible vehicle for transportation, and a medical grade hi low bed for assisting with transfers and safe sleeping. She uses all this equipment daily. Niya’s family reached out to Maddie’s Miracles for assistance with a ceiling lift to help transport her to her handicap accessible bathroom. The family needed the lift as Niya is getting older and will continue to grow. Transferring her in and out of the bed and shower chair was getting more difficult and would continue to worsen as she got older and bigger. The safest and less strenuous option was a ceiling lift. The lift was denied several times by the family’s insurance company. A ceiling lift is quoted to cost anywhere from $7,000 to $12,000 which is not affordable so that is when the family decided to seek help elsewhere. Once Maddie’s Miracles read their submission we decided to meet the family. Within two minutes of meeting Niya and her beautiful smile and spunky personality we knew she her family needed the lift and decided on providing it for her and her family as our next miracle. The ceiling lift was installed by Laurel Medical on September 24th, 2024. It took less than two days to have the lift fully installed and ready for use. The family told us immediately after it was installed how much Niya loved it and how it has helped them tremendously. It has allowed them to provide a safe mode of transfer to and from her bathroom. Niya always enjoys taking her zipline and always has a huge smile on her face when she’s in it.