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Family Outraged After Quadriplegic Marine Denied Free Admission to Michigan Amusement Park
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
The family of a U.S. Marine is outraged after a Michigan amusement park insisted on charging the veteran admission to enter the park — despite his being a quadriplegic -- according to a newspaper report.
Heather Lovell told the Grand Rapids Press that she had been at the park acting as a chaperone for a children's group, and her fiance, Joshua Hoffman, was just meeting up with her there briefly before she took him to his stepbrother's graduation.
But even after she explained that Hoffman had been paralyzed in 2007 by a sniper's bullet in Iraq and is unable to speak, let alone go on rides, the park insisted both Hoffman and his nurse could not join her in the park without paying, Lovell told the Press
"It was really just outrageous," she said. "He is not physically going on any rides."
Michigan's Adventure General Manager Camille Jourden-Mark said park policy requires even non-participants to pay the admission fee.
"We just can't be in a position of picking and choosing. We have grandparents (who pay admission) that come in our park every day that have no intention of ever going on a ride," she told the Grand Rapids Press.
Jourden-Mark later offered the family complimentary passes for Hoffman and a guest, the Press reported. Lovell said she has not decided whether they will use the passes.
More:
[url]http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2009/06/family_angry_when_paralyzed_ma.html[/URL]
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
The family of a U.S. Marine is outraged after a Michigan amusement park insisted on charging the veteran admission to enter the park — despite his being a quadriplegic -- according to a newspaper report.
Heather Lovell told the Grand Rapids Press that she had been at the park acting as a chaperone for a children's group, and her fiance, Joshua Hoffman, was just meeting up with her there briefly before she took him to his stepbrother's graduation.
But even after she explained that Hoffman had been paralyzed in 2007 by a sniper's bullet in Iraq and is unable to speak, let alone go on rides, the park insisted both Hoffman and his nurse could not join her in the park without paying, Lovell told the Press
"It was really just outrageous," she said. "He is not physically going on any rides."
Michigan's Adventure General Manager Camille Jourden-Mark said park policy requires even non-participants to pay the admission fee.
"We just can't be in a position of picking and choosing. We have grandparents (who pay admission) that come in our park every day that have no intention of ever going on a ride," she told the Grand Rapids Press.
Jourden-Mark later offered the family complimentary passes for Hoffman and a guest, the Press reported. Lovell said she has not decided whether they will use the passes.
More:
[url]http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2009/06/family_angry_when_paralyzed_ma.html[/URL]