Jeremy Corfe is an 18-year-old Aldergrove resident who was born with spina bifida.

He gets around on a power wheelchair, which his step-mom, Corrie, said was a long, paperwork-entrenched process to purchase.

鈥淗e鈥檚 a D.W. Poppy student and had a seizure in the summer of 2019, which complicated things,鈥� she explained.

Coming from a blended-family of six, Corfe is the youngest, but is notably large for his age.

At six-foot-four, his shoulders were wearing out and his self-propelled wheelchair was becoming problematic and unsafe.

A $16,000 price tag for the new, upgraded chair was too much for the family to cover.

鈥淚t鈥檚 astronomically expensive,鈥� Corrie commented. 鈥淚t鈥檚 more than my car.鈥�

Government funding ultimately covered half, but the Corfe family still needed help to secure the new chair.

Corrie said the occupational therapist at D.W. Poppy recommended Variety, a program that assists families with care for children with special needs .

Though COVID-19 stalled funding applications and slowed down communication with team members working from home, Variety decided to help the Corfe family.

鈥淛eremy was aging out of the program, but because of special circumstances, they put him through,鈥� she noted.

Funding from Variety, plus money from B.C. Shriners, paid off the new chair in full.

It was delivered in October 鈥� complete with headlights, four-way flashers, and a horn.

鈥淭he wheelchair is so heavy, all of our floors had to be changed,鈥� Corrie said. 鈥淗e has to be a good driver or else our poor dog would be toast.鈥�

She was quick to thank D.W. Poppy for their support over the years as well as Variety.

鈥淓veryone is awesome and Variety even did a story,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e had accessed them before. They鈥檙e the reason Jeremy got the first chair.鈥�

Corfe鈥檚 story has been shared by Variety on numerous occasions, and will be touched-on again this weekend at the 55th Annual Variety Show of Hearts Telethon, which airs on Global BC, Saturday, Feb. 20 from 1 to 5:30 p.m.

The three-day event officially kicks off on Thursday, Feb. 18, with an extended time period introduced to raise more funds for children in need.

鈥淲hen you have a kid in a chair, everything is a challenge,鈥� Cassie assured.

Last year鈥檚 Show of Hearts raised $5,515,238 to benefit children province-wide.

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Cally Wesson, CEO of Variety BC, said as the pandemic continues, so does the need for support which is growing every day as more and more families are being affected.

鈥淚n addition to lifesaving medical supplies, mobility equipment and specialized therapies, we are seeing an increase in mental wellness counselling and virtual tutoring applications as kids are struggling to cope,鈥� Wesson said. 鈥淚鈥檓 hoping that British Columbians will, once again, come together to ensure that this year鈥檚 fundraiser will be our most successful yet so that we鈥檒l be able to say 鈥榶es鈥� to all of B.C.鈥檚 kids needing our help, and that no child is turned away.鈥�

This year鈥檚 entertainment line-up will feature sixteen-time Grammy Award-winning songwriter David Foster, American Idol alum Pia Toscano, and Canadian rockers, Loverboy.

Donations can be made by calling toll-free at 310-KIDS.