All young ladies dream dreams: but while 16-year-old Rachel Buckley is dreaming, she’s also busy designing cities and kicking soccer balls with an energy and enthusiasm that raises the bar for her peers. Instead of slowing her down, the prosthetic leg and soccer-customized Cheetah foot she wears seem to motivate Rachel not only to keep up with her able-bodied teammates, but to do more—and do it faster and better every time.
Facing diabetes from a young age, Jim Davis allowed it to shape him, not define him. Despite suffering severe health complications, his unwavering resilience triumphed. Post-gastric sleeve surgery, and after shedding significant weight, his determination soared to new heights as he participated in the Tour de Cure bike ride. With an unshakable support system comprising of family, healthcare team, and prosthetists, Jim has turned his life around and is steadfastly setting ambitious goals for the future. His story is a testament that no matter the adversity, with determination and support, progress and rehabilitation is always possible.
The stork can only claim part of the credit for the family created by Guy and Linda Reid and their three exceptional children: Emily (7); Sarah (10) and Matthew (11). Although the Reid’s three children were adopted at different times over a three-year period, and were born into different Chinese families, people often ask Linda if they’re siblings. “They are now!” she laughs. “Many people think they’re triplets. That’s funny.”
The rigors of daily life in a war zone are unimaginable to many; it’s a world filled with hardships, insecurities, and very real dangers to life and limb. Izzeddin Alnawasra, a 15-year old survivor of such a life, lost his leg in a traumatic amputation after sustaining a gunshot wound in May 2018. He later came from Gaza, a Palestinian territory on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea, to the United States, and arrived in a wheelchair—but “with a smile that would light up his whole face!” remembers Mike Kelly, CP, Izz’s prosthetist at Lawall.
The distance between Philadelphia and Fort-Liberté, Haiti, is more than 1,450 miles, and the two cities are worlds apart in many other ways, as well; but Deacon Alynx Benardin’s commitment to serve his parish and complete his path to ordination as a Catholic priest inspired others to help span that gap. Despite distance, language barriers, and pandemic travel complications, the arm Benardin lost in a vehicle accident in Haiti was successfully replaced with an above-elbow prosthesis and hand created in Philadelphia in 2020 by Lawall.
What type of individual is quoted in his medical chart as replying “all things considered doing pretty well” as he is being rushed into an ER after having his leg traumatically severed following a motorcycle accident? The same person who now proudly wears a t-shirt stating “Some Assembly Required” Hamilton Township Patrolman Robert Whartenby is a motivated individual with a fantastic perspective on life.
