Brendan Cook was born with Caudal Regression Syndrome, a condition that affects the development of the lower spine.
As a result, the 30-year-old has relied on getting around with a wheelchair for as long as he can remember.
Raised in foster care from a young age, he said he was fortunate to have one foster dad his whole life who he is still close with.
He also keeps in touch with his biological mother who lives in the Lower Mainland through Facebook and now that he has a phone they can FaceTime, he said, adding he also has a brother in Tumbler Ridge.
Growing up in Williams Lake he attended Glendale and Columneetza schools.
“School was actually OK,” he said. “I was the only one at Glendale in a wheelchair when I was there.”
Accessibility in Williams Lake is in some cases easy and in some cases not, he said.
Some of the buildings don’t have the button to push the doors open so he has to rely on someone else to open the doors for him.
When he goes to one of his favourite restaurants, he speaks to the owner or her assistant through the mail slot and they come let him in.
In June 2023 he moved into the Williams Lake Creek Apartments on First Avenue North.
Before that he lived on South Lakeside in a two-story home but with no sidewalks and a steep driveway he didn’t feel safe.
“The snow made it hard for my electric chair.”
Happy with his new home, he said it’s on the main floor and is designed for a person in a wheelchair.
All the counters and light switches are lower for him to reach them.
He doesn’t cook for himself on the stove, but will use a microwave or a toaster.
Through the Williams Lake Association for Community Living he has support worker three times a week, who he said helps him with cleaning his apartment and grocery shopping.
“We’ll go out for something to eat or do my laundry and work together.”
He enjoys the living downtown and being close to the grocery stores, shops and his favourite restaurants.
When asked if he had any hobbies, he reached into his bag and brought out a Rubik’s cube.
Handling the 3D combination puzzle, he said a friend who was originally from South Korea taught him how to solve it and ever since he’s been solving them.
“I do it every day. I can solve it in about 34 seconds. It took my friend about two weeks to teach me and then I could get it done easily.”
One of the main reasons he does the puzzle is because when he was young he had major anger issues.
“Doing this actually calms me down quite a bit.”
He also plays lots of video games.
Since moving into the apartment block he’s made some friends in the building and they enjoy hanging out together and visiting outside.
When John Del was installing ramps at the bowling alley across the street, Cook said Del used him as a tester of the ramps to make sure they OK.
During the interview he said he was super excited about the upcoming Lakers Car Club Show.
“I want to see the cars and all that like last year.”
So far he has not met anyone else with Caudal Regression Syndrome, and said once he learned he had it started to learn more about it.
According to the National Organization for Rare Disorders, the caudal is the lower end of the spine. A wide range of abnormalities may potentially occur in infants with caudal regression syndrome including abnormal development (agenesis) of the sacrum and coccyx and abnormalities of the lumbar spine.
Presently he doesn’t have a family doctor.
“My doctor was Dr. J. Neufeld retired and I have not got one since," he said.
