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Jun 04, 2024MOORHEAD — Thursday, Aug. 24, marked the first day of school for students at Moorhead High School.
But something is missing: Addie Loerzel, a Moorhead teen and the founder of Addie's Royal Cupcakes, is not there.
"A week-and-a-half ago, I was helping Addie get ready for the day and noticed that she has developed a pressure sore. It's the first one she has had her entire life, and she has been a wheelchair user for 17 years," said Marisa Loerzel, Addie's mother.
The life-altering injury stems from a trip to the American Women of Service Pageant in Maine over the Fourth of July weekend. Addie's chair was found in pieces after their Delta flight, with the damage costing well over $100,000.
"The damage to Addie's chair changed the alignment of the chair, which changed the way she distributes the body weight in her chair and changed different pressure points on her," Marisa Loerzel said.
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It has left Addie Loerzel stuck in bed 22 hours of the day.
"It's not fun, but I know it's what I have to do. You have to do what you have to do to get better," Addie Loerzel said.
The injury is causing her to miss some of the biggest moments of the year.
"I want to go to school so badly and see my friends. I got to see my bus driver this morning. When the bus drove by, I waved to them and they waved back," she said.
Delta has agreed to buy a new power wheelchair for her, but with supply chain issues, shipping and the labor that goes into making that custom chair, it has been delayed.
The delay is putting Addie's first day of school and the family's plan to visit all 50 states on hold a little longer. Addie will be able to go back to school this year, but it will not be for another few months while she heals and waits for her new chair to arrive.
"Things need to change, and they need to change now. We can't wait 20-30 years for airplanes to be more accessible. Physically, we need to put things in place now (so) that people feel protected and comfortable flying," Marisa Loerzel said.
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