giving thanks

Thanksgiving came early this year for Riverside family

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By Sue Moning, Contributing Writer 1:46 PM Wednesday, November 25, 2009

RIVERSIDE — It may seem a tall order to be thankful five months after signing consent forms for doctors to remove half your son’s leg.

For the Hilgeford family of Riverside, that gratitude is due, in large part, to how 7-year-old Alex accepted it, and how resilient and positive he has been since the surgery. An avid baseball player and bicycle rider, the loss of his lower right leg hasn’t slowed the St. Helen’s School first-grader.

Born with medical problems that caused webbing in many of Alex’s soft tissues, Drew and Mindy watched him adapt to play alongside other kids.

Despite numerous surgeries, Alex’s right leg remained shorter than his left, leaving him to “tip-toe run” the bases and use weight-shifting to ride his bike. “He was adapting and modifying,” Drew said.

But both parents knew they faced a big decision.

No amputation meant eventually Alex would have to use a wheelchair. Amputation was the only way to help Alex remain mobile as he matured, they said.

Mindy and Drew put together a list of pros and cons for the surgery.

“We actually had trouble coming up with the cons,” Mindy said.

Then, they posed the question to Alex, whose immediate response was in favor of removing his leg.

“Very intuitively he knew what was best for him,” said Mindy, now a surgery scheduler at Children’s Medical Center.

Alex awakened from the surgery in June, disappointed he didn’t have the artificial leg in place. He was off morphine after 36 hours, and home less than three days later, said Drew, owner of three area Dairy Queen franchises.

Shriner’s Hospital for Children in Lexington, Ky., provided the prosthesis and follow-up care.

Within 30 minutes of getting his new leg, Alex was taking his first steps without assistance or supports.

Alex remains active, and has named his artificial leg Fred. For the Hilgefords, Thanksgiving blessings came early.

“It’s a decision we’ve never regretted. We never look back,” Mindy said.

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