Illness to Inspiration

By Devon Walsh 
Anchor, News 5, WKRG TV

May 19, 2009 -  Jerry Nasello can't go for a beach walk. But he enjoys beach rides just as much.A few years after being diagnosed with ALS, he was confined to a wheelchair. but he still wanted to be out on the sand. So he created the Beach Chair. Click photo to view story

A powerful story
How one man’s struggle and determination is bringing joy to many
By Dale Jones Reprinted from the Islander Newspaper


[May 13, 2009] — In the beginning, the Bon Secour Wildlife Refuge was a subdivision for the veterans of World War II.

Unlike the way Veterans are treated today, shortly after the war it seemed that not enough could be done for our veterans. So the state of Alabama dedicated more than six thousand acres for a subdivision specifically for veterans. The area was laid out and surveyed, but that was as far as the plans went. Although the land was charted and lots were sold to veterans at ridiculously low prices, no streets were built, no utilities laid, so everyone was pretty much on their own if they chose to move in.

In 1980, the federal government got involved, looked at the land, and realized the value of this pristine property that was just sitting along the coastline. The government bought the real estate and turned it into a National Wildlife Refuge. The problem was, there were some veterans who had purchased some of the lots, and the state was hesitant to renege on the deal they had made on their behalf. Still, after making numerous concessions, the Federal Wildlife Refuge obtained the property from the state, changing it from an undeveloped subdivision for veterans into the Bon Secour (Safe Haven) National Wildlife Refuge. Those who already had property within the confines of the new Wildlife Refuge were allowed to keep their property if they wanted it, they could build on it, or they could sell it to other individuals who also had the right to build if they chose to do so. Another choice was to sell the property back to the Wildlife Refuge.

Jerry and Mary Nasello found a piece of property that they liked and purchased it from a lady in Cullman, Ala. whose husband was one of the first veterans to purchase land in what is now the Wildlife Refuge. While purchasing the land was not such an issue, building a home on the property was a different story altogether. “There were just so many restrictions,” explained Jerry Nasello. “First, they didn’t want us to build a road. We had a lot of trouble just getting that done. Getting all of the permits was difficult. We were trying to stay out of the wetlands so that the Corps of Engineers would not have to get involved.” Nasello said that if you were in the wetlands at all, there would have been issues with the Alabama Department of Environmental Management. “It was bad enough just building in the uplands. We put the road in the uplands, we put the house in the uplands,” he said. The truth be told, the Nasello’s probably shouldn’t have the privilege of having a house in the Wildlife Refuge, but they went through all of the red tape, they dotted all the I’s and crossed all the T’s and now they are home. But that is just the beginning of the story.

Jerry Nasello, the former Mercedes Benz and BMW automobile salesman who has a loving wife, a wonderful family and what anyone would consider a dream home, also has Amyotrophi Lateral Sclerosis, more commonly known at Lou Gehrig’s Disease. ALS is a progressive neuro-degenerative disease caused by the degeneration of motor neurons that control voluntary muscle movement. Over time, the disease causes the muscles to grow weak as the neurons no longer send messages to the muscles.

Not long after becoming afflicted with ALS, which Jerry Nasello refers to as “the beast,” he started getting fatigued. It was becoming impossible for Jerry Nasello, whose house is literally walking distance to the beach, to walk to or on the beach. So he, along with help from his caregiver, Tammy Fortenberry, developed a way for anyone confined to a wheelchair to be able to enjoy the sea, the sand and the surf. “Now it is no longer impossible for someone in a wheelchair to enjoy the beach,” Jerry Nasello said.

Editor’s note: Find out how Jerry Nasello’s motorized beach cart evolved into an accessible power wheelchair that will run in the sand in Part II of “A POWERful Story.”