Introduction — The original LifeWalker upright walker was created by a loving husband (our Founder, Dave Purcell) for his wife, Jean, who was suffering with mobility challenges. After trying traditional walkers and rollators and finding that the existing designs led to a hunched-over walking position, caused additional pain, breathing challenges, instability and indignity, he designed an upright walker with solutions to all of those problems. Jean was able to regain her mobility with his new upright walker design, created with love and ingenuity. Their story is what led to the UPWalker you see today. Dina Turner is a devoted daughter and one of our newest customers. Her Dad suffered from walking challenges after serious illness and a fall, so she researched mobility products, watched our YouTube video and then ordered an UPWalker for him. A special gift given with love. Here is their UPWalker success story.
We noticed Dina's comments on YouTube below our demonstration video...She was so excited to find a supportive and easy-to-use walking solution for her Dad!
Dina's Dad suffered walking challenges after illness, a stroke and falling, and conventional walkers were causing him more harm than good. Dina discovered the UPWalker after researching mobility products online, and a new chapter in her Dad's life began!
Dina's care for her Dad was so touching...Our UPWalker team had to find out more, so we reached out to her for an interview. She was incredibly nice to share their story, so that others with parents suffering from mobility challenges can learn more about the life-changing benefits of the UPWalker.
UPWalker: Dina, first off, thank you so much for joining the UPWalker community and sharing your Dad’s joyful experience on our YouTube channel; we’re so glad the setup video was helpful!
Dina: You’re most welcome! The day I brought the UPWalker to my Dad, the way his eyes lit up, it brought me as much joy as it did him! The set up was very easy and the video made it even easier to ensure that I followed each step correctly.
UPWalker: We’re on a mission to help customers who suffer from walking challenges caused by illness, loss of stability from muscle weakness, injuries and other debilitating issues. What types of walking problems was your Dad experiencing, what led to you getting him an UPWalker?
Dina: My Father suffered a trifecta of issues all at one time, in June of 2015, at the age of 84. Two of them being pneumonia and a stroke. By the grace of God, he made it through and was able to regain some mobility on his left side. After four months of rehab, he was able to return to his home. The rehabilitation center gave him a walker, however, when my father had the stroke, he collapsed on the concrete which injured his back even further. I noticed that using that standard walker was causing him more harm than good. His posture was not comfortable no matter how you adjusted the height, and his arms used to shake in weakness because standard walkers require upper body, arm and back strength. So one day a couple of months ago, my Dad gave me the phone number from your UPWalker TV commercial. I was a bit skeptical, because sometimes, buying TV products doesn’t necessarily mean they’re good products. So I did some research on “upright type” walkers. I saw two of them but, they were either too big to go through a standard household door, they were too heavy, or you have to take some of it apart in order to fold it up for travel. So then I went to Youtube and watched your video.
My Father is everything to me and he’s my hero. He served in two military branches Army/Navy, and he’s is the best Dad EVER. It means everything to me to ensure that if we purchased this product that it would be what he was looking for, with stability and mobility, but more importantly SAFE for him to use. Your video was answering all the questions I needed. Size, stability, weight and purpose. We decided to purchase an UPWalker, and it was the best decision we ever made.
Devoted daughter, Dina Turner, helped her 87-year-old Dad to rediscover independent walking with stability, comfort and joy...with his new UPWalker!
UPWalker: What a wonderful story, Dina! We meet so many people who are losing their ability to remain active, feeling trapped indoors, and the lack of regular walking outdoors impacts their overall health, social life and happiness. What did you notice happening to your Dad’s lifestyle after starting to use his UPWalker?
Dina: Well, first he is much more mobile through the house. He used to only sit in his bedroom. Now he’s all over the house. He exercises much more with it, doing basic squats for example. He wants to move and do things now! There’s a light in him that I haven’t seen in a few years since his illness and it’s great to see again.
UPWalker: What are some of the most important things that you noticed changing or improving when your Dad started using his UPWalker?
Dina: His balance changed immediately, right along with his posture which is back to normal. With the standard walker, he would move considerably slowly and unsure. With the UPWalker, once he started, he was at a normal walking pace! We went to the store and he just up and left me, LOL! The smile and the look of independence on his face was everything to me. Making my Dad happy just brings me such joy. My Dad deserves all the best!!
UPWalker: Okay, here’s a fun one...You mentioned that your Dad actually named his UPWalker! Can you tell us the name, and why he chose it?
Dina: LOL, yes, he named it “Lucille”! That’s the name of BB King’s Guitar. There was no BB King without Lucille, and now there is no Dad without Miss Lucille the UPWalker!
UPWalker: Dina, thanks so much for sharing your story with friends in the UPWalker community! We’re grateful to be connected with loving family members like you, and our team at UPWalker wishes you and your Dad walking enjoyment and best of health.
If you'd like to learn more about how the UPWalker can help your loved ones who suffer from mobility challenges to rediscover walking capabilities, independence, and a more active, healthier lifestyle, we'd be happy to help you. Click here to order and to watch the UPWalker video online, or you can call toll-free to order at 1-800-716-3185.