Grove Man Loses Much-Needed Van To 'Friend'

Friends of a Grove man hope community support will get help him get back on the road.

Kyle Summerfield's van was stolen from the nursing home where he lives, leaving the quadriplegic man stranded. He said he believes the person who took the van was his friend.

"Said he was on his way to California and I believed him," he said. "Didn't believe he'd take my van though."

He said he was trying to help a friend in need, but that favor has now left Summerfield with no transportation, other than his wheelchair.

"Seemed like a good guy, seemed like the guy I knew," Summerfield said. "Turns out he wasn't."

He said the friend was homeless and needed a place to sleep.

"Back in the day, he gave me a place to live, so I figured I'd return the favor," Summerfield said.

But last week, Summerfield woke up to an empty parking space, and his "friend" was nowhere to be found.

Summerfield has been wheelchair-bound since a bad car accident in 2015 left him paralyzed from the chest down. He said he relied on his van to get him out of his assisted living facility.

"Just not being able to go visit family or go to a friend's house and have an average 25-year-old's life,” he said. "It's kind of hard being the youngest person staying in a nursing home."

His friends started a GoFundMe page to help Summerfield get a new van, but he hopes his friend will have a change of heart.

"I really just want my van back," he said. "I don't have any hard feelings. You can bring it back, shake hands and we'll go our different ways, and that'll be that."

Grove police said they are investigating the incident.

To help Summerfield, click on his GoFundMe link here.