2002 Plymouth Voyager possible dirty fuel filter or lines?

Hi, Jodi here. I recently drove from Florida to New York (approx. 1275 miles) with 1 night stay over. No problems along the trip till my last gas up, which was approx. 100 miles from my destination. I turned off the engine at the rest stop to walk my dogs (approx. 20 min). Was ready to gas up but van didn't want to start, it would crank overbut not start. I waited approx. 15-20 minutes then tried again. After 3-4 cranks it started. When I went for gas I did not turn the van off. I have a 20 gallon tank and the attendant put in 17 gallons. I believe that by getting so low on gas may have sent dirt into the filter or lines. Anyway, when I completed my trip it was late night so I parked the van in a temporary area. The next morning, again the van was hard to start but did. I had to move it to a more secure location (only to the back of my sister's home). I turned the van off & left it sitting a couple of days. The next 2 weeks I spent trying to figure it all out. I changed the spark plugs because the gap was way off and the ceramic area had small amounts of a rusty dust on them. New plugs are a double platinum tip & only required 1 or 2 adjustments to the gap as per requirements on van label. Also checked all fuses & relays, all good. Checked fuel lines, some wear found on the EVAP canister pass-thru hose (cracks @ both end connections). Looking under the hood area, I found 2 hoses (for air?) Disconnected that appeared to be connected to the ERG Valve (I believe in the oxygen sensor area) and reattached them. (Tried to start engine, NG, it was same as before). A neighbor suggested that I could have a bad fuel pump so I tested it as per info in my Haynes manual. I believe it is working fine. I really do think dirt got into the filter or lines but if at all possible I would like to avoid dropping the fuel tank because of its' weight. I used a siphon kit but was only ably to remove about half of it's contents. Can't figure another way to try so the rest is a risky problem. I do have access to a 7000 lb jack & plywood if I have no other choice. I desperately need to return to Florida soon and my van is the only afforded means of transportation I have. Any possible suggestions you may have will be greatly appreciated. I am sending a small donation of what I can afford in my current situation, I sincerely wish it were more. I was referred to your site by my sister, we are both in our 60's & have only the knowledge we can obtain from books or the web. Your 2pros. Com is the most fantastic site I have ever came across. I sincerely thank you for opening your expertise to people like me. Jodi
PS: My van's label says only that it is a "Chrysler Voyager".