MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Annette Carter said she has an ordinary family, but you might know one member in particular: her son, Terry.
Forty-two-year-old Antario “Terry” Davis’s claim to fame is a viral video from a couple of years ago. In it, Davis lights a firework with family while his cousin Eldraco Wooten records the moment.
Carter said Davis’s hand shakes, symptomatic of the incident that left him wheelchair bound in the first place. She said Davis fell in a bathtub when he was in his late 20s, leaving him partially paralyzed.
“He was getting out of the tub and slipped backwards,” she said.
Despite the accident, Carter said Davis is full of life and wanted to set off fireworks that year.
In the time it took for Davis to light the fuse, Carter said his wheelchair shut down; when he tried to move away, it didn’t work immediately.
Carter said the whole family was screaming, worried Carter would get hurt.
“Put it in reverse, Terry!” Wooten shouted in the video.
Once they realized Davis was OK though, Carter only had one thing on her mind.
“I said, ‘Tell me somebody got that,'” she recalled.
Now, Carter said Davis needs a new wheelchair so he can stay independent. Davis lives with his grandmother in what Carter said is a very small house. So small, in fact, the first wheelchair Davis was recently sent was too big to maneuver there.
The chair Davis received couldn’t clear small corners or fit in the bathroom, allowing him the independence he wants. His grandmother, 81, wasn’t able to help him maneuver much either, Carter said.
So, she said returned the wheelchair and got a receipt for it. The receipt was supposed to prove to the insurance company Davis did not have a new chair and did need a replacement.
But, Carter said, she misplaced the paperwork. Without it, the family would have to wait five years to be eligible for another chair, something Carter said Davis’s therapist wouldn’t work.
Carter started a GoFundMe for Davis’s new chair and said strangers reaching out have surprised her most.
“So many people have been so nice, trying to reach out and help us out,” Carter said.
She said people tell her Davis’s video puts a smile on their faces and brings joy to their lives; they want to give back, and a donation is the best they can do for him.
“Back it up Terry is a household name for them now,” she said.
Carter said she thanks everybody who donates personally and by name; they are a part of her extended family forever.
And Davis said he can’t believe all the support he’s getting.
“I appreciate everybody,” he said. “I really appreciate everybody.”
