GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga.,None — The Gwinnett County parents of a severely disabled child are trying to recover from a devastating crime.
A thief stole their van at church last week with their daughter's specially equipped wheelchair inside.
The wheelchair belongs to Aysia Clements, 9. Clements' parents said Aysia was born with cerebral palsy and can't walk or talk. They said Aysia has to be fed through a tube and functions at the level of a nine-month-old.
The nearly $10,000 specially equipped wheelchair was specially fitted for Aysia. Her parents said the chair was her link to the outside world.
Just days ago, as the family left church services in Decatur, they came out and realized the van was stolen along with Aysia's chair.
"That chair was part of normalcy for her and when somebody took that chair away from her, they took a part of me as well," Aysia's mother, Batoya Clements, said.
Without the chair, Clements said Aysia can't go to her special school. The van was the only vehicle the family had.
DeKalb County police said they have recovered the van but it was trashed.
"The radio was gone, the steering column is basically pulled out, it was just trashed. The van will cost about $5,000 to fix and it really wasn't even worth that much," James Clements, Aysia's father, said.
The Clements' said the van was not insured.
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James Clements told Channel 2's Diana Davis he lost his job about a year ago and dropped most of the insurance when the van was paid off.
Clements said he has a new job but at about half his former salary
In about two weeks, Aysia is scheduled to go back into the hospital for surgery.
Despite all the heartbreak, the Clements' said they have endured this latest incident and said they will stay strong for their little girl.
"I'm a man of faith and I believe that what you do in these situations is what determines your character," James Clements said.
The family said they hope whoever took the chair will turn it in.
"If you have any kind of decency, just please leave it somewhere where someone would see it," Batoya Clements pleaded.
"My hope is that other people who are considering doing something like this will think about the families that they affect and hopefully they will make a decision to do what's right," James Clements said.
If you would like to help the Clements family out or have information about the missing wheelchair, you can email the family at jclem21@gmail.com.
WSBTV
