June 2024
by Chelsea Ezell
Our trip to the Smokey Mountains and Dollywood was really amazing, and we were very thankful for the help of Team Gleason.
We need a lot of help to take our show on the road with Matt being 6’4” and 4 kids (8 and under).
We had friends, a family of 5, join for physical assistance transferring Matt safely and driving one of our kids because our van was full.
We had my mom come to help me with the driving. We had Matt’s parents and brother meet us there for extra help with the kids. It was 2 days of driving, but the mountains were wonderful.
The cabin at Little Valley Mountain Resort that Matt did research on was very accessible and accommodating.
There were many cabins available, allowing for Matt’s family to stay nearby.
Dollywood was our first full day. We were very thankful to Team Gleason for paying for the park tickets so our friends who had already made such a financial and time sacrifice didn’t have to pay their own way.
Matt’s parents paid for the VIP experience, and it was such an AMAZING experience and the only way to go if in a wheelchair.
There were two personal staff with us the whole time allowing for us to go to the front of the line and directing us to the best rides for our logistics.
They were even able to ride with us when a 1:1 ratio was needed with kids.
This was hugely helpful! Matt was even able to ride 2 of the rollercoasters with our boys and that was so memorable.
The biggest challenge was not having a good shower chair.
Due to our family size and other equipment we already had to take, we were unable to travel with a shower chair and this made showering uncomfortable and dangerous.
There wasn’t really a great solution 😬
