Hudson-Peralta is supported by BraunAbility and his dealer, The Creative Mobility Group in Madison Heights, MI. When you purchase a mobility product from BraunAbility, you join a powerful community.
Moments after Ryan Hudson-Peralta was born, he was whisked away by doctors. Medical professionals told his parents, Kimberly and Patrick, their son would never be able to hold a job, have a family, or drive a car. Hudson-Peralta was born with a Congenital Limb Deficiency, a condition causing limbs to not fully form. For Ryan this means shortened arms and legs and no hands, something he fully embraces, as evident by his social handle “Look Mom No Hands”.
Hudson-Peralta has defied all the things the doctors told his parents he would never do. Today, he uses his power wheelchair and his BraunAbility Chevrolet Traverse to keep up with his nonstop lifestyle. Hudson-Peralta works as a Principal User Experience Designer at Rocket Central. He is also a motivational speaker, a mentor to children with limb differences, and a father to his two children, Myranda and Noah.
Wheelchair Accessible Vehicles Change Lives
Before driving a wheelchair accessible vehicle of his own, Hudson-Peralta stayed at home in his wheelchair, or he was driven around by family members. He said, “I remember being a kid and my friends are going doing whatever they want, and I'd have to be stuck either in my manual wheelchair or having my parents drive me around.” With his wheelchair accessible vehicle, Hudson-Peralta said, “I'm super independent. I can go to work. I can go get coffee. I can do whatever I want on my own anytime. It helps me be independent and not have to rely on people for getting me around.”
Driving Independence for People with Disabilities
The road to independence for Hudson-Peralta was full of what he would refer to as “speed bumps” – while his physical disability slowed down the process of getting his license, it did not stop him from getting behind the wheel.
Hudson-Peralta has used BraunAbility vehicles since childhood – that’s three decades and counting. His parents first drove him around in a wheelchair accessible Dodge Grand Caravan with woodgrain accents. When he was old enough to get his own vehicle, Hudson-Peralta purchased a Chrysler Town & Country with a foldout ramp. But his experience wasn’t without a few more speed bumps. While his friends were driving at 16, Ryan spent three years saving for his vehicle, attending drivers ed, and learning how to drive with adaptive equipment. Eventually, Hudson-Peralta passed all his drivers training - all that was left was the driving test, a test which the DMV told him was “impossible” because they did not have driver evaluators specialized in adaptive driving. Again, Ryan had encountered a speed bump, but after a few weeks, he was evaluated for a license, just as a non-disabled driver would be, and he got his license.
Choosing a Wheelchair Accessible SUV
Hudson-Peralta had been driving for over 20 years before he got his Traverse. He said, “I didn't wanna drive a minivan anymore, and when I saw that BraunAbility was doing the Traverse, I just had to get it.” Once Hudson-Peralta got his Traverse, he adapted it with multiple modifications to meet his needs.
Today, he’s able to control everything in his vehicle using his feet and his shoulders. Ryan has multiple modifications throughout his vehicle. His pedal extenders accommodate his short stature, allowing him to accelerate and decelerate his vehicle. Low effort steering, which he controls using his shoulders, allows him to turn his vehicle in any direction with ease. Lastly, his control panel, located on the driver side door, allows him to control vehicle features like windshield wipers, turn signals, and radio volume.
Earlier this Summer, Hudson-Peralta took his Traverse to visit BraunAbility, where he had the chance to see how BraunAbility wheelchair accessible vehicles are made. He said, “My experience with VMI…it was fine in the beginning, but then I had tons of problems with my door and tons of problems with the ramp getting stuck.”
After touring the factory and meeting BraunAbility employees, Hudson-Peralta said “I love my vehicle. I would definitely recommend people look at a BraunAbility vehicle. I’m never gonna get anything else. I know that for sure.”
