An Oregon community came together to build a 500-square-foot tiny house for a teenager who is paralyzed
Volunteers in Oregon helped build a tiny house for a 16-year-old who was paralyzed last year.
The group, led by architect Dan Hill, spent six months building the 500-square-foot tiny home.
The house is more accessible for the teenager, who now uses a wheelchair.
Ethan Gillaspie received the keys to his very own house on Friday, but it wasn't a traditional house. It was a tiny house designed just for him, KEZI reported.
Last year, Gillaspie, 16, was paralyzed after an accident, and his current home in Springfield, Oregon, wasn't accessible, according to KEZI. So his community in Springfield came together to build a home that would better fit his needs.
The project was led by Dan Hill, an architect at Arbor South Architecture. Hill and dozens of volunteers worked together for six months to build the 500-square-foot home, which sits a few hundred feet from Gillaspie's main house, according to KEZI.
"When we heard about the accident with Ethan becoming paralyzed, we just knew that their existing home wasn't adequate for his ability to maneuver the house," Hill told KEZI.
Hill worked closely with Ethan and his parents to design the home. Since Ethan uses a wheelchair, the home has a large shower and other elements that make the home more accessible to him.
The entire house was built and funded by volunteers, according to Arbor South Architecture's Instagram account.
"They're just the most wonderful family," Hill said. "They're just humble and grateful, and they were open to our ideas and just wanting to help where they could help, too."
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