A wheelchair-using dad built special bunk beds for his kids despite cramped space

The Wheelchair Dad surprised his three kids with special bunk beds. These beds include two regular ones and a high loft bed with a swinging ladder for easy access.

Despite facing challenges like hospital visits and daily life, Dan Kotter, 46, worked on building the special bunk beds for over a year to fulfill this dream for his three youngest daughters: Marlee, Maisie, and Quinn, aged 3, 4, and 12.

“I’ve always loved building and changing things up and putting something together. So, it was something I wanted to embark on,” Dan told GMA.

Dan and Andrea Kotter, parents of six, have four bedrooms for themselves and their children. Andrea had a special idea for their youngest kids’ shared bedroom and designed it uniquely.

Dan and Andrea collaborated to bring this idea to life.

“I turned to Pinterest and saw all these cool, built-in bunk beds. And then we worked together and kind of came up with a design that would custom work in this room,” Andrea said.

Dan Kotter, a carpenter who uses a wheelchair, faces challenges when working, particularly in cramped spaces.

To overcome these obstacles, he relies on creativity. He often needs to rethink his approach, sometimes working backward most of the time.

Despite facing challenges, Dan enjoys building special bunk beds for her girls. He shares his daily life and ongoing projects on social media, aiming to inspire others.

In 2013, Dan helped his friend build a house after he had a serious accident, according to PEOPLE.

He was standing on a high platform that suddenly moved, which was the last thing he remembered.

When he woke up, he was in the hospital. After his accident, Dan recalls landing on his hammer, causing severe damage to his L-1 vertebra.

He also suffered other severe injuries like a torn spleen, a collapsed lung, and a broken pelvis. This accident completely changed Kotter’s life.

Before, he worked in construction and was very active, but now he can’t move or feel his legs.

His wife Andrea, who met him during his recovery, shares that Dan sought inspiration from YouTube but found little hope for paralyzed individuals like him.

Disappointed by the lack of positive content, they dreamt of creating their own to offer hope to others facing similar challenges.

Dan wants to show that a fulfilling and joyful life is possible after such traumatic events.

“I got online and was just searching around and couldn’t really find anything, and the things that I was finding at the time were demotivating,” Dan said, describing his motivation to share as “The Wheelchair Dad.”

Andrea started posting about their blended family life on TikTok as The Wheelchair Dad.

One video featuring the playroom-style bedroom Dan built for their daughters went viral, garnering over 23 million views, which Andrea called a “Christmas miracle.”

Being active is essential for Dan, improving his mental and physical well-being. It helps ease his extreme nerve pain and prevents him from dwelling on negative thoughts.

Andrea said she enjoys watching her husband work on the special bunk beds. She finds it fascinating to see him so engaged and happy when he’s using tools and working with wood.

It’s like he forgets about his paralysis and fully immerses himself in the task.

The Kotters aim to inspire and offer hope to others by sharing Dan’s journey as a paralyzed wheelchair user and their experiences as a blended family.

Dan enjoys showcasing his abilities to Andrea and the kids, demonstrating that he can still accomplish things despite his wheelchair.

“Hopefully [my kids] look at it and remember that ‘Dad did this for me growing up even [though] he had a wheelchair,'” he said.

Watch Dan as he builds the special bunk beds for her daughters:

You can also follow The Wheelchair Dad on their Instagram for more inspiring contents.