She felt like the walls were closing in around her.

Deloris lives alone in her Columbus home, but after suffering a stroke that limited her mobility, the world outside those walls became increasingly difficult to reach.

She relies on a walker and wheelchair to get around. Leaving home, even just to go into her own yard, meant searching for a neighbor to help or calling her niece to come over. Even then, they would have to pick her up in her wheelchair and carry her down the porch stairs.

Most of the time, Deloris only left home every few months for doctor’s appointments.

For two years, this has been her life.

Until now.

United Way of Bartholomew County and FORVIA’s Ramp It Up program recently brought 11 volunteers together to build Deloris a wheelchair ramp. Volunteers spent most of the day measuring, pounding and building, transforming lumber into something much bigger: a safe way for Deloris to leave her home on her own.

It was the third ramp built through the program this year and the 19th since Ramp It Up began in 2018.

And when the work was finished, Deloris knew exactly what it meant.

“I’ll be able to go outside.”

No searching for a neighbor. No calling her niece. No being carried down the stairs in her wheelchair.

Just the freedom to open her door and go.

Ramp It Up helps ensure neighbors who need assistance can safely enter and leave their homes. That independence can improve overall well-being and health while allowing people to remain connected to their communities.

For two years, Deloris’ world had been largely limited to the four walls of her home.

Now, a ramp has changed that.

“Just getting out and looking around, it is a lot better than these four walls,” Deloris said. “I won’t have to look for someone to help.”