Photo courtesy Tiffany Hones
Kathryn Hones poses with her family in front of the new van they received last month from APX Alarms.

On Oct. 28, the efforts of several employees from APX Alarm Company, including Kathryn’s uncle, Greg J. Young, a senior from Bullhead City, Ariz., and William Greg Young (who is referred to by his middle name), a junior from Monument, Colo., paid off as the Hones family received a new van that could accommodate Kathryn’s wheelchair.

Kathryn Hones was born with a rare brain malformation called Dandy-Walker Syndrome. According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders, the syndrome prohibits motor development and has other effects such as increased head circumference, seizures, lack of muscle control and irregular breathing patterns. Kathryn was diagnosed with this uncommon disorder when a cyst was discovered at the top of her spine before she was born.

As a result, Kathryn is missing 98 percent of the left side of her brain and doctors “predicted that she was going to pretty much be a vegetable for the rest of her life,” said Kathryn’s uncle, Greg J.

However, Kathryn can do a lot more than medical specialists thought possible. “She has gradually proven them all wrong,” said Tiffany Hones, Kathryn’s mother. Kathryn is able to sing, communicate, and walk around in a walker.

Still, Kathryn’s health was slowly declining and she had become susceptible to seizures. As a result, she required several hospital stays.

It was not long after that Keith Nellesen, owner for APX Alarms, was looking for someone in need of the company’s assistance. Greg J. Young sent an e-mail describing the situation of his sister, brother-in-law and their daughter, Kathryn. The family needed a van equipped with a lift and a new wheelchair for Kathryn.

A charity day was held on Aug. 26, 2006, and all of the APX alarm installations for the week of Aug. 24 were donated to the cause.

As a result of the donated installations and sales, the Hones family received a new Toyota Sienna equipped with a lift for Kathryn’s wheelchair. While at a gathering of about 2,000 people in the David O. McKay Events Center at Utah Valley State College in Orem, Utah, W. Greg, who donated five of his sales—the most of any employee, presented the keys to the van.

“They were very excited. You could tell they really needed it, and were extremely grateful,” W. Greg said. “It was a wonderful feeling to be able to bless their lives with a little charity work.”

“[It was a] complete surprise and there was deep gratitude for the generosity of people who don’t even know us,” Tiffany said.

Since receiving the van, the Hones family has been putting it to good use.

“This van has been such a blessing.  Not only has it enabled us to transport Kathryn in a safe and easy way, but we can tell how much she loves it,” Tiffany said.