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Maryville's Donnell and Janet King are used to living between a rock and a hard place, but their latest setback has even them nodding in disbelief.

Earlier this month, thieves got into their van parked outside their residence and stole a wheelchair — the wheelchair of their 6-year-old disabled daughter who needed the chair to take her to doctor's appointments and physical therapy. The couple reported the incidence to police but the chair is still missing and the Kings aren't sure their insurance company will pay to replace the $7,000 customized pediatric wheelchair.

Hannah King, who will turn 7 in May, was diagnosed with a rare chromosomal disorder, called Trisomy 14 Mosaic Partial when she was just 5 months old. She has part of an extra chromosome on the 14th pair. The mosaic part of the diagnosis means some cells contain the extra chromosome and some don't. Partial means there isn't a complete extra chromosome.

Hannah is nonverbal, is fed through a feeding tube and has had a trach since she was 2. She has no fine motor skills and requires around-the-clock care.

The Kings said there are probably 1,000 or fewer children worldwide who have this disorder, although many in Third World countries may be improperly diagnosed with cerebral palsy. Those diagnosed with Trisomy 21 have Down syndrome, a more common chromosomal disorder.

Why would anyone still a wheelchair, and even more unfathomable, one for a child?

The Kinds said they posed that question to Blount County officers who came to the house. One theory was the value of the metal. Janet said whoever did it must have been desperate.

“If they had come up on the porch and stolen a bike, it would be evident that that person might not have a bike but they could walk. A wheelchair implies that a person can't walk or has difficulty. I don't care how desperate I ever am, I could never steal a wheelchair.”

Before they were able to obtain a loaner wheelchair, the family had to carry Hannah to the van and back again whenever she needed to be transported. That happened just a day after the theft, when Hannah had a high fever. “We were carrying her around like a sack of flour,” Donn said.

The next move

The family admits things have reached a crisis at their small home outside the city limits. Donn and Janet share their home with two of their other children, and Hannah. Hannah's tiny 9-by-11-foot room is certainly cramped. She has a hospital bed and several pieces of equipment taking up nearly every inch of space.

It has been a hard road for this family. From the time she was 8 months old until just two years ago, Hannah was in the hospital over 20 times. It was after one of those extended stays that the family was finally provided the 24-hour care.

Janet said she sometimes gets angry whenever she sees parents yelling at their children in public or jerking them by the arm, when the reality is, those kids are just being kids.

“I would give anything for that,” she said.

“Be glad your child can make a sound,” Donn said.