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Bryan heads out to the backyard play structure to play with
his brothers.
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“The battery-operated car is exactly what he needed to get out in the yard and interact with his brothers,” says mother Sandy. “Thanks to H.A.L.O. he doesn’t have to sit watching his brothers play, he can participate and be like any other kid.”
Sandy and her husband Erik adopted Bryan from an orphanage in China almost 1 ½ years ago. At the time he had a diagnosis of “lower limb atrophy and paralysis.” He was unable to walk, but there was no hesitation about the adoption.
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| Bryan's adoptive family. |
Nearly two years before, unaware of Bryan’s existence, Sandy and Erik had welcomed Bryan’s older brother Darren as the seventh child in their family after learning about his serious heart condition on an international adoption blog. They brought him to pediatric cardiologists at the University of Michigan and today Darren is a healthy seven-year-old.
They began the pursuit of Bryan’s adoption after learning about him from an American volunteer at the same orphanage where Darren had lived. Sandy said “We later realized we even had pictures of Bryan peeking from a crib on our previous trip to the orphanage from two years before. It was meant to be.”
U.S. doctors initially diagnosed Bryan’s condition as Spinal Muscular Atrophy but testing was negative. He continues to be tested to get to the root of his condition.
Since making his home in Michigan, Bryan has developed some strength and feeling, but no reflexes, in his legs, according to Sandy. He crawls and can steady himself against the walls or furniture, but outside his parents carry him or use a stroller. Although Bryan can use a walker it is impractical in the family’s yard, which slopes down a hill.
“We are so thankful to the H.A.L.O. Foundation for Bryan’s [Fisher Price Power Wheels] car because it gives him a sense of independence, a chance to be a little boy. We don’t know what his future holds, so we just try to enjoy our time with Bryan now,” Sandy says.
Visit www.halo.org to learn more about requesting gifts and making donations.
