Why Billy had a great big smile on his face this Christmas

Billy ‘Dozer’ Byrnes-Adam will be sitting more comfortably and spending more time with his siblings this winter, all thanks to the generosity of friends, family and even total strangers.

Billy, who lives with cerebral palsy, has a special wheelchair and a special bed, and up until Christmas morning those were about the only two places he could rest comfortably.

Ivy, Billy’s mom, said she is still in awe over how an entire community came together to get her son the new chair he wanted - including an anonymous stranger who dropped off an envelope of cash.

“I’m running out of words to describe how awesome it is,” Ivy told SooToday on Friday.

About a month ago, Ivy and her husband, Murray, came upon what they decided was just the thing for eight-year-old Billy, whose term as Easter Seals Ambassador is just winding down.

It’s called a Chill-Out Chair and it’s something like a living room recliner, only it’s very soft and its seat is extra deep to give kids like Billy the support they need. Billy was able to try it out at Children’s Rehabilitation Centre Algoma.

“It was amazing. Right there we knew we wanted it,” said Ivy.

The snag was that while the chair would improve Billy’s life, it’s not an appliance that is considered medically necessary, so neither the government nor the charities Ivy and Murray approached were able to fund it.

A post to Facebook about how the couple were trying to get the $2,700 adaptive seat spurred a cousin to create an online crowdfunding page and from there, Ivy said, friends, family and even a few very generous strangers stepped in.

“It wasn’t even 24 hours and (Billy) had more than enough for his chair,” said Ivy.

In fact, thanks to the many donors who contributed, the Adam’s were able to order two chairs - the recliner and a corner chair which will allow Billy to play on the floor and spend more time with his siblings.

The new chairs will also help with the respiratory issues that bother Billy during the winter.

“I can’t believe the way everybody just comes together,” Ivy said.

PHOTO: Billy Byrnes-Adam tries out his new chair on Christmas morning. Supplied photo.