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Ohio father builds handicap-accessible snow fort

CINCINNATI, Ohio — It's a heart-warming story about a cold-weather activity. An Ohio father created a snow fort that is accessible for his handicapped children.

Everyday life is busy for the Eichhorn family.  Mom and dad head up a household made up of 9 kids. All 9 are adopted and each has special needs.

Over the weekend, Greg, his sister and the kids built a snow fort large enough that the kids' wheelchairs would fit inside it.

"We built a bigger igloo, one that had a handicap-accessible hole so Elijah and Zahara could experience it, because I did when I was a kid," Greg Eichhorn told WXIX.

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Eichhorn's friend shared the picture online -- originally just wanting to show people how big it was -- but soon, the icy tower melted people's hearts. Reddit users praised the Eichhorn family for their work to include people living with disabilities.

The picture was a big deal for a lot of people, but Eichhorn says they were just having fun. "It didn't feel like a big deal. All of our kids, since they came from different places, we love adoption and kids with special needs, that kind of stuff."

Eichhorn says their home is a fallback for many kids with special needs. He hopes someone considering adoption sees their story, opens their heart and gets to experience what they have. "Our family is getting kind of full and it would be great if people stepped up, took on the same roles and enjoyed the kind of joy that we do. Because yeah, we get a lot of joy out of life."

Eichhorn says he's heard from people who have offered to donate money to help his family. However, he replied to then saying he's rather they give those funds to adoption agencies.

 

CNN/WXIX

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