Wheelchair users are dependant on accessible areas, so when a disabled womanโs home ramp became unusable, she was essentially isolated in her own house.
The woman from Tallahassee, Florida, sent out a distress call to her local sheriffโs office in the hopes that they would be able to help.
The result was better than the woman could have imagined.


In response to the call, the Leon County Sheriffโs Officeโs entire Bravo Alpha shift went above and beyond, working together to fit a new ramp.
12 employees spent almost 8 hours removing the old ramp and constructing a brand new one so that the woman would be able to go down her ramp and access the outside world.


Sometimes, all thatโs needed is a bit of empathy.
Something that Sgt William Punausuia, one of the officers who helped build the ramp, felt all too strongly.
โI felt for her because I wouldnโt want to be (locked) in my house,โ he said. โWith COVID and everything people want to be out and doing thingsโฆ and as a law enforcement agency weโre good at helping people.โ


After realizing that her ramp was no longer fit for use, the poor woman hadnโt known who to call.
While weโre not given much insight into her situation, the sad reality is that many people donโt have friends or family members living close by that they can turn to in times of need.
โThe route of the problem was that no one was helping her and she didnโt know who to get in contact with,โ Sgt Punausuia said. โSo I reached out to some people and they started helping out-and this is where Iโm at today.โ


Itโs easy to forget that a police officerโs job isnโt just about enforcing the law. Theyโre often the first point of call for vulnerable people who donโt know who else to turn to.
Sgt Punausuia hopes that the officersโ kind actions will remind people of the important role that police officers play in helping out the community.
โItโs not just necessarily enforcing laws and responding to calls; itโs whatever we can do to make our community great and help others. Itโs how I was raised, and itโs what most law enforcement officers believe in,โ he said.


Last Sunday, the sheriffโs office proudly shared a video of their team building the new ramp onto their Facebook page, along with the caption:
โLast Friday, our deputies responded to a call for assistance from a citizen who was in distress. After speaking with the citizen and seeing the condition of her wheelchair ramp, deputies realized she wasnโt able to leave her home.


In a charge led by Deputy Mark McGowan and the entire Bravo Alpha shift, during their personal time, decided to build her a new ramp!
All lumber and other materials were provided by Ability1st and bulk pickup from Leon County Public Works Department. This is what #ALLinLEON is about! Great job team!โ


The video, which received over 46k views, features an interview with both Deputy Mark McGowan, as well as the woman who had needed the new ramp.
The woman was blown away with the help that she received, and became teary as she told the camera that she โnever would have expected this.โ She added, โIโm more grateful than you could ever know.โ


What an amazing response from the Leon County Sheriffโs Office! Scroll down to watch the video for yourself below.
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