Talk show gives mom wheelchair-accessible van Kelly Ripa presented van to mother of daughter with MS BY KATHY CHANG Staff Writer Colonia residents Barbara and Ilene Pineiro won the Mom's Dream Come True contest - a red 2007 Chrysler Town and Country wheelchair-accessible van - from the "Live With Regis and Kelly" show recently. Barbara Pineiro [l], with Robert Schickler and Len Schickler, owners of Brunswick Automotive & Mobility Professionals in North Brunswick, her daughter, Ilene, and Candie Pavese. It was a wish come true for Colonia resident Barbara Pineiro and her daughter Ilene. "They told us we were going outside to plant a tree for Earth Day," said Ilene, who works as a teacher's aide at Sacred Heart Elementary School in Newark with her mother. Little did Barbara and Ilene know, but Kelly Ripa, co-host of the "Live With Regis and Kelly" show, was waiting to surprise them the morning of May 3 with their new 2007 Chrysler Town and Country wheelchair-accessible van. The Pineiros had won the van as part of the Mom's Dream Come True contest, sponsored by the popular morning talk show. "We were both surprised," Ilene said when they saw Ripa drive the van up to them. "I think the kids [all the students from the school] were more excited then us." COURTESY OF CINDY MESKO Ilene, 38, has multiple sclerosis, which left her wheelchair-bound six years ago. "I drive a 1990 Oldsmobile," said Barbara. "This is so nice what these guys did. I don't think I got how to drive the van yet, but I am so happy for Ilene. Before we would have to transfer Ilene with a manual board, and if one thing went wrong, she would slide off. Then, Ilene would have to sit there, sometimes on the street, and I would have to go for help. It was rare for that to happen, but now it won't happen with this van." Candie Pavese of Edison and her sister Cindy Gulics, who have been best friends with Ilene since they were in high school sent letters to the "Live With Regis and Kelly" show to express why their friend's mom was in need of this Mom's Dream Come True contest. "You know, you don't think you're going to win," said Pavese. "But we've always seen the contest and decided to write in. On April 11, we found out that we had won and we decided not to tell Barbara or Ilene. They definitely deserve this. We actually didn't know what they were going to give them because we didn't say specifically a wheelchair-accessible van." On May 15, Robert and Len Schickler, owners of Brunswick Automotive & Mobility Professionals in North Brunswick, contributed the red van and presented it to Barbara and Ilene for them to bring home. The Braun Corp., based in Indiana, installed the wheelchair ramp. Pavese said that Barbara doesn't have to worry as much for her daughter because of the van. "She would always be worried even when we would go out with Ilene," said Pavese. "She definitely deserves this." As Barbara's nerves were still settling in, she was not too confident on driving the van, which was considerably larger than her Oldsmobile, but her daughter Ilene assured her she was going to drive. "Maybe not on Route 1, but we will pull over in the Menlo Park Mall parking lot [in Edison] and you can drive home from there," she told her mom while Pavese was behind the wheel. "You drive over there all the time." Barbara glanced over at her daughter while trying to remember everything that Robert Schickler was describing to her about the vehicle. Ilene said there were many places she wanted to go now that they had the wheelchair-accessible van. "I want to go down to Atlantic City," she said. "My mom also wanted to go down there so we will probably take a trip down there."