17-05-2025
Community gives back to cancer patient after hit-and-run leaves wheelchair lift damaged
BAY COUNTY, Fla. (WMBB) – A Bay County woman is mobile again, after an unfortunate incident left her with no means of transportation.
When Doris Robbins left her doctor's appointment at HCA Gulf Coast on March 12th, she never imagined being the victim of a hit-and-run. While inside, someone hit the side of her car, damaging her wheelchair lift.
'They never bothered to say anything about who they were. They never left a note, no insurance information. So I was left to figure out a way to get my wheelchair home. And it ended up my daughter had to ride it all the way from Gulf Coast Hospital to Lynn Haven, that's a long ways to travel on a wheelchair, but that's the only way we could get home,' Robbins said.
With no way of transporting herself, Robbins was facing a harsh reality, but a Facebook post shared by Josie-on-the-go reached hundreds, who then shared the post.
Some even offered to fix Doris' chair lift.
That's when someone told her daughter about a Panama City non-profit called 'Center of Hope.' A longtime member of the organization recently donated a wheelchair lift used by his late wife.
'I started thinking about who I could give it to and couldn't find anyone, and prayed about it. Finally, said let's just take it down to the center of hope and see if somebody needs it,' Center of Hope Counselor Hugo White said. 'It was a blessing to us, just like it's a blessing to her.'
Center of Hope contacted Doris' family, and two days after the accident, Robbins had a new lift.
'The community just comes together, and it makes me proud for people to know I'm from Bay County. It makes me proud because people are good,' White added. 'It's the people here that I appreciate so much. They'll never know how much I appreciate them. You know, all I can do is ask God to bless them.'
Doris said being with her grandchildren is her motivation for fighting her battle against cancer.
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