Family of well-loved London, Ont. barber Eddie Lopez seeks accessible home
In the summer of 2022, London, Ont. barber and business owner Eddie Lopez suffered a brain aneurysm, heart attack, stroke, and seizure while watching his daughter Anastaysa play soccer at a tournament in Ottawa.
Life turned upside down for the family.
“It’s been a lot, for sure,” said Anistasya while talking with CTV News on Thursday.
“We’re all struggling, all of us, but you know we’re just stronger together,” added her mom, Lopez’s wife Jody Davis.
Shortly after that incident, an online crowd-funding campaign was set up to help the family with bills and other living expenses.
Now 38, Lopez continues to recover at Parkwood Hospital in London. “He is doing really, really good right now, actually,” said Davis. “He’s talking, eating regularly, moving his arms and legs and things like that, so he’s doing really, really well.”
Once again, the family is in need of aid. Once Lopez is well enough to be released from hospital and come home, he’ll need accessible housing.
Right now, they’re in a two storey townhouse. They’re looking for a new home to rent, but so far they have struck out.
London barber and business owner Eddie Lopez continues to recover at Parkwood Hospital. (Source: Submitted)
“A place where it’s a one floor place is what we’ve been trying to find,” said Davis. “Preferably with a stand-up shower so that I can roll him in there. It’s hard because places are also very expensive. And technically, although he has a business, he’s not working, so he doesn’t really make money from that. Prices right now are just crazy.”
Karla McLean, the chair of The Angel Project, a charity that supports people living with disabilities, told CTV News that they’re getting a significant number of requests for people who need help with home modifications, such as chair lifts. When it comes to finding accessible housing in Ontario, she said the struggle is real.
“It’s almost impossible. We’re finding it very, very difficult for people now to secure any kind of rental with a disability that is accessible for them. Advocate, advocate for your loved one, for yourself, if you have a disability and you’re trying to secure accommodation.”
She advises people to work with their landlords to modify homes to meet accessibility needs and standards.
If you have an accessible home for rent, you can contact Jody Davis at 519-872-2288.
In the meantime, Anistasya said the family is staying strong and positive just like her dad, “From what I’ve seen in the hospital, he’s always pushing, he’s still the most positive guy I know. I really thought that maybe he’d be angry all the time, but he’s always smiling and laughing at all times.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
Trump's lawyers try to discredit testimony of prosecution's first witness in hush money trial
Donald Trump's defence team attacked the credibility Friday of the prosecution's first witness in his hush money case, seeking to discredit testimony detailing a scheme between Trump and a tabloid to bury negative stories to protect the Republican's 2016 presidential campaign.
U.S. flight attendant indicted in attempt to record teen girl in airplane bathroom
An American Airlines flight attendant was indicted Thursday after authorities said he tried to secretly record video of a 14-year-old girl using an airplane bathroom last September.
Powerful tornado tears across Nebraska, weather service warns of 'catastrophic' damage
Devastating tornadoes tore across parts of eastern Nebraska and northeast Texas Friday as a multi-day severe thunderstorm event ramped up in the central United States.