Local

Wheelchair stolen from girl with disabilities in Riverside

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Clara Rasch would normally be sitting in her wheelchair instead she's in her mother's arms.

“This chair is her vehicle to the outside,” said Beth Rasch, Clara’s mother.

But then the unexpected happened and like that her mobility was swept away.

“I really feel like it just rolled away from our house,” Beth Rasch said.

But not on its own. Police say little Clara's wheelchair vanished into the Halloween night.

“Probably for a Halloween prank,” Beth Rasch said.

The family had been passing out Halloween candy at a neighbor’s home around 11 p.m. Friday. For the first time ever Beth Rasch says she left the 10-year-old's chair unattended.

Rasch told Action News Clara's chair was sitting steps away from her front porch facing their house. Then she thought her husband had put it inside the van. But just over an hour later they noticed it was gone.

“Having that chair just to be able to put it in the car and go is a blessing,” said Kevin Rasch, Clara’s father.

Clara depends on the custom-made chair. She suffers from seizures and cerebral palsy. The chair is her support.

“She's extremely fragile,” Beth said.

The Raschs told Action News that insurance paid for the expensive chair. It costs about $6,000. But the monetary value is not even close to the real reason the family wants it back.

“Our worry is that it took a year and a half to get this chair for her,” Beth said.

“It helps our entire family feel more like a family,” Beth said.

And what they want more than ever is Clara’s chair brought back to her.

The Rasch family told Action News they're thankful for the community's outpour of support.  If you have any information about this case you're asked to call police.