CAROLINE COUNTY, Va. -- After a spider bite in 2012 left Chad Fortune a quadriplegic and dependent on a power chair, friends and family are rallying around the Caroline County native hoping to get him a wheelchair-accessible van.
Fortune believes issues with his spine began after he was bitten by a brown recluse spider while out working with his family's business.
He spent over 30 days in the hospital and had difficulties walking when returning home. In the years following, Fortune had several surgeries in the hopes of improving his condition.
Unfortunately in 2022, a surgery he hoped would be a beam of bright light and a new beginning for him, turned to dark clouds.
Fortune received a diagnosis that would change his life forever - he woke up from surgery and realized he could no longer walk.
And despite over two years of physical therapy, he is still unable to walk.
"This part is still hard to talk about till today," said Fortune. "I was laying there and all I could do was cry because I was still drugged up and I was like why can't I move?"
Fortune said he is still unsure of what went wrong. "That’s been two years and 9 months and I’m still in this condition," he said.
The once football star said he never imagined going from active and independent to completely dependent on the help of someone else.
"I was always the person on the go. I love to drive, I love to ride, I love to do things for people," Fortune said. "It just destroys me to not be able to do."
With the change in his condition came a new reality, now confined to the sun that shines only on his home, Fortune said he often travels outside for a glimpse of normalcy.
"The only time I get out right now is to go to doctors' appointments," he said. "I really have no life other than here because of no way to go."
His home nurse Chaneva Sykes said she's seen how not being able to leave the house much has impacted Chad. "He really is just in the house, but when we go outside, I see him come to life."
Fortune says going outside even if it's just in his yard makes him feel better. "It’s kind of like a connection back to people again from being trapped in the house all the time," he said.
Hoping to give Fortune a fraction of the freedom he desires, his loved ones want to get him a van where it can be easy to transport his power chair.
Longtime friend Rodney Boyd said getting Fortune a van would change his life and he knows that he cannot afford to purchase one on his own.
"Having that van or vehicle would really help him and help his morale," said Boyd.
Fortune said missing moments with his aging parents, close friends, and community dims his spirit. However, he hopes one day with an accessible van he can leave his house and let his light shine brighter than ever before. "I don't ever let what I’ve lost stop me. I’m always pushing forward trying to be happy but you know it would open up doors for me," Fortune said.
If you'd like to donate to help Fortune afford an accessible van, you can do so at this GoFundMe page.
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