About Loyal Lifts
Hello, I’m Keith Alan Wells, a life-long resident of Buncombe County.
There’s a story behind Loyal Lifts that’s important for me to share. When you come close to losing your life, you learn to have immense gratitude for everything you’ve got. For me, that includes my steady-as-a-rock wife, Candace, and our two sons, Matthew and Drew. It also includes my community—all of these people have played a vital part in how Loyal Lifts came about.
Back in 2015, when I was driving a debris truck for the city of Asheville, I got a wake-up call in the form of a mini-stroke. At that time, I weighed over 300 pounds, was pre-diabetic and, when I looked down, couldn’t even see my ankles. The night I spent in the hospital waiting for my MRI, I had an extremely long talk with the Lord and decided it was time to make some big changes in my life.
Once I was back at work, on doctor’s orders, I could no longer drive the truck. In order to keep my job, I had to ride on the back and load brush and debris. At first, I was so out of shape; I was in pain a lot of the time. I got through it in large part due to my crew, who kept encouraging me to stick with it. At the same time, I started exercising and changing my eating habits. After three really tough months, I had lost about thirty pounds and could ride on the back step of the truck without pain. I just kept going from there. About ten months later, my body was 110 pounds lighter, and my spirit was too.
Since that wake-up call, I’ve had to deal with more bad news about my health. I’ve gotten two different cancer diagnoses and have undergone treatment for both throat and colon cancer. Both times my treatment involved surgery and missing many weeks of work—way more time than my sick leave could cover. I got lucky, though. Asheville has a “leave-sharing” program that allows any city worker to donate their unused sick time to help out people like me.
Finally, after recovering from both bouts with cancer, I went back to work only to suffer a severe shoulder injury while working out at the gym. I was back at home recuperating again for several weeks and had a lot of time to think. That’s when the idea for Loyal Lifts came into being. I know firsthand what it’s like to be limited by mobility issues, and how life-changing the experience of receiving so much support and care can be. I wanted to start a transportation service that not only offered comfortable, reliable transport door-to-door but also treated all of our customers with dignity and respect. In other words, a Loyal Lift.
Read more about Keith's Story Here
I have so many people to thank for getting me through—my doctors who gave me expert medical care, my friends and family who gave me loads of love and support, and the generosity of strangers who allowed me to never miss a paycheck. I know the Lord also helped get me through—in fact, I’m certain he’s been watching over me through all of it. I’ve beaten both cancers and am now healthy and whole.
I’ve had more than my share of health challenges over the past five years, but I’m convinced that without them, I wouldn’t be the person I am now. After much thought and prayer and 27 years of manual labor, I decided to leave my job and start Loyal Lifts Transportation Services. I want to give back by helping people and bringing smiles to their faces. I want to be of service.