CHULA VISTA, Calif. - For one mother, it was an emotional day of paying it forward, a chance to pass on a lifeline on three wheels her family once received themselves.
I was there as Marlene Swanson rolled her late daughter’s adaptive trike toward Jennifer Jensen and her daughter Rachel, 32, outside the Stein Education Center in Chula Vista on Thursday morning
Marlene Swanson says meeting Rachel and her mother Jennifer Jensen is both special and bittersweet.
“A lot of mixed emotions,” said Swanson.
"This is such a blessing gift, you have no idea how much this means. My heart goes out to you," said a tearful Jensen to Swanson.
I first met Swanson in 2021 after a thief stole her daughter's adaptive trike from their Chula Vista yard. For the 18-year-old Desiray, born with Down syndrome, the trike was a lifeline.
After our story aired, ABC 10News viewers stepped up. Within hours, an online fundraiser reached its goal, enough to replace the trike.
"Oh my God, look at that Desiray," Swanson said, as Desiray received the custom trike in May 2022.
This past June, Desiray passed away from complications of chronic lung disease. Afterward, Swanson shared her desire to pass on the gift.
"It's vital," Swanson said when asked how important it is to find a good home for the trike.
Among the emails we received after our story was one from Jensen, whose daughter Rachel lives with cerebral palsy and autism, attending a daily adult program at the Stein Education Center, which support adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. When Swanson heard Rachel's story, she knew where the trike should go.
"The universe works, God is real," Jensen said, as she hugged Swanson.
"Kind of a bittersweet moment. This is more closure that she's gone and not coming back, but I'm so thankful this bike lives on," Swanson said.
It lives on as a lifeline for Rachel.
"This means freedom for Rachel. It means she can feel the wind on her face," Jensen said.
It will also live on for many others in the adult program, which will make use of the trike when it isn't with Rachel.
When asked how Desiray would feel if she were here, Swanson laughed, “She wouldn’t want to give it up. She loved it so much, but I feel she's looking down, giving us a thumbs up.”
Swanson remains determined to honor her daughter’s legacy. Two years ago, Swanson created Desiray’s Lights of Joy, a nonprofit that has given out dozens of neon signs for kids undergoing bone marrow transplants.
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