Thank yous, the day after a LBC kinda day...

At Given To Live we don't get big donations or sponsorships. We'd love to and hopefully we will but for now we manage on the generosity of individuals making donations.

A little while ago we had a generous donor contribute specifically for Joshua to see Pearl Jam again. After many conversations between Christina and I the Swansons decided a hometown show was to much for Joshua to miss. Up until that point they were going to skip the show and find a fan to buy their tickets as moving house is hitting them hard financially. But it's going to be a home with all Joshie needs so it's a sacrifice more than worth making for them.

So next thing is how do we get ADA tickets? How do we get Joshua somewhere he can see. He has 2D vision so being close of in a clear line of sight is important. In the end the best option was going in GA and hoping it works out but also knowing this is where Joshua wants to be, with his band, his friend. Then this morning GTL got a message from someone asking if we'd found ADA tix for Joshua yet because if not he could help.

Most of us love a band and have friends, partners, jobs, hobbies. Can go to the movies, to the store to buy a soda. Joshua has Pearl Jam. He can't tell you what's going on so Christina doesn't really know why Joshie listened to Yellow Ledbetter for 15 hours straight a few days ago, specific versions with Little Wing or Star Spangled Banner. But maybe it's because his teacher Miss Carrie has left his school and she'd play YL for him at the end of the day if he'd kept his side of behavioural bargains and he misses her. Or is it to comfort during the upheaval of his home being made ready to sell? Or something else entirely? But he'd go crazy if it wasn't on so it stayed on.

So when I got this message the answer was yes we do need help with ADA. We arranged to speak this afternoon and a beautiful story unfolded. The story of an honest mistake being to big a weight on a conscience. Wishing to remain anonymous this latest friend of Joshua told me this.

Having got on the rail for a show earlier in the year he knew he wanted to do it again. So after being shut out of the Wrigley sale he went on stubhub and saw tickets available in a tiny section in front of the stage and wanting to keep his promise to himself he bought two tickets. Great tickets. Tickets in front of GA. When he read the email confirmation these tickets turned out to be in the disabled section. He had no idea this was what he'd bought. He didn't know what ADA meant until reading the email. Now he was in a bind.

In a bind he could easily have got out of because he's a disabled veteran having served as a Marine. He has every right to be there. But his disability is a mild limp and PTSD and he just didn't feel comfortable taking seats away from someone who might need it for a wheelchair. He felt he had no right to these tickets and also remembering the kindness and generosity of a family fans to him at a show earlier in the year felt inspired to pay it forward and went searching for someone to donate the tickets to.

Now, thanks to this wonderful man's sense of doing the right thing Joshua has a 4th row seat on Mike's side for Wrigley 2. When I skyped Christina to tell her she took a good while to make sense. She was processing and saying oh my god a lot. Saying how incredible a gesture. Not believing but knowing it was true. You see Christina knows Pearl Jam is his life. Joshua will never bring his first girlfriend home to meet mum, never graduate, never pass his driving test. Her biggest fear is he will be too big to care for at home so will need to go into care. So a 4th row seat for her boy isn't just a 4th row seat, it's seeing her son happy, smiling, maybe standing again, maybe dancing with mum's help. It's Joshua being where he's home, happy.

There are two tickets and we somehow want to find to more so the family can be fully together. Christina can't fully manage Joshua on her own as she has her own health issues which legitimately could entitle her to a disabled space in her own right but she doesn't want to take away from Joshie or get attention - sometimes having conditions which aren't immediately visible is far more difficult to be accepted for because some of society expect a disability to come with a wheelchair.

We're not sure how or if it's even possible to get the extra ADA tickets. It's galling to see tickets in the same row on stubhub for $1k each.

Joshua is going to see his friends at Wrigley, the Love Boat Captain will sail again.

Thank you so much to this wonderful Vet who gave up his tickets because he knew it meant more to do the right thing than to see a show up close.

Christina's messaged me to say her husband Josh can't believe it. When I finished the call with Christina she'd gathered her wits after tears of joy for her boy and said something that really struck deeply; Joshua hates Christmas, hates wrapping paper, mum and dad try and find gifts for him and nothing works except Pearl Jam stuff. This is like all his Christmases have come at once for Joshua, the real Christmas which isn't an ordeal. The Christmases of love, wonder, joy, surprise. Joshua's getting his very own Christmas party at Wrigley with the best Santas ever.