Luke Rice was born with a heart defect and had open heart surgery at seven days old. At the age of six months old development delays were apparent and he was diagnosed with cerebral palsy.
A development specialist at that time wanted to do genetic testing and the results showed Rice has a unique and rare chromosome deletion identified as 1Q4 Chromosomal Deletion.
Today, Rice is a happy 15-year-old boy who is non-verbal with a sweet and happy spirit. He enjoys wearing hats and watching people.
As Rice grows into a teenager, his muscle tone is getting tighter due to the cerebral palsy spastic muscle tone he has. He weighs about 92 lbs. and is 5 feet tall. He undergoes Botox injections treatments in his hamstrings and is doing physical therapy to help with his muscle tone.
Having a bike would be a good way to exercise his legs. Luke is not able to walk long distances. He does wear orthotics, which help support his legs.
Rice attends a special education life skills class at Crawfordsville Middle School and will be an eighth grader this coming school year.
Crawfordsville Kiwanis is raising money to fund a special tricycle for Rice to use.
Those wishing to help, can participate through a GoFundMe page at https://gofund.me/60847247 or by sending a check to Crawfordsville Kiwanis, P.O. Box 611, Crawfordsville, IN 47933.
