WARREN, Ohio (WJW) — An Easter fundraising tradition is focused on helping a 12-year-old girl with a rare neuromuscular disease.

Heather Bentley and her daughter Cambrie Bentley struggle to get around town every day because their family vehicle is not wheelchair accessible.

“I wish I could make it look a little more glamorous, but I can’t,” Heather said.

Cambrie has a rare condition called Type 2 Spinal Muscular Atrophy.

“She has limited muscle movement,” Heather said. “She had to have a full spinal fusion when she was 10.”

Trips to school, physical therapy or hanging out with friends are all impacted by the laborious process of attaching and detaching the powerchair to the back of the vehicle. Heather worries that she could also drop Cambrie while carrying her from the car to the chair and vice versa.

“I understand firsthand what it’s like to have a daughter with a disability,” Danella Monsman said.

Danella’s daughter Krista Monsman has the same medical condition as Cambrie and the two are best friends. A couple of years ago, Danella created a fundraising idea called “Egg My Yard,” to purchase improvements needed for Krista.

This year, securing a wheelchair accessible van for Cambrie is the focus, so Danella and her team of Easter bunnies will deliver candy stuffed eggs and drop them off in your yard for Easter.

“The deadline for orders is March 24, and we start delivering late Easter eve depending on how many yards we egg,” Danella said. “Last year we did 170 and I know we’re going to surpass that this year.”

To meet those high demands, the girls are helping to make egg orders.

“The good thing about filling eggs is I can eat some of the candy — one for the egg, one for me,” Krista said.

It’s a lot of work but they say it’s well worth it — especially if it can help make Cambrie’s day-to-day easier.

“It would mean a lot because I could come over here (Krista’s house) more often,” Cambrie said. “I could go out on the weekends, which would be nicer. It would be easier to get to therapy because we go to physical therapy (often). It would be easier to go there.”

The cost of a used van is around $30,000 and a new one is over $50,000, these costs are typically not covered by insurance, Danella said.

Having a friend that cares and is willing to help means the world to the Bentley family.

“There’s no cure for this disease, and as she grows older her needs for mobility are going to get greater,” Heather said. “So that’s what we’re really looking for. And we’re so grateful to have the help of our friends to try and gain a wheelchair accessible van for her so she can feel a little bit more included, in a society that doesn’t always include. It’s difficult.” 

To order eggs for Easter contact Danella or Makenzie Monsman via email at dmonsman@hotmail.com, or by phone/text at 330-647-0673.

If you don’t need eggs, but still want to help a GoFundMe campaign has been created.