Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, November 3, 1994 TAG: 9411030048
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: KENNETH SINGLETARY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG LENGTH: Medium
But 6-year-old Ricky, who has been diagnosed with a "severely profound" case of cerebral palsy, is stymied, partly because of the disease that afflicts him and partly because he has simply outgrown his wheelchair.
A new wheelchair is beyond Ricky's mother's means, and she is turning toward her community for help. Ricky needs round-the-clock care, so 29-year-old Wanda Smith doesn't have a job and must get by on a little more than $600 in government support and food stamps each month. Ricky's doctor says the boy's tormented body won't hold out much longer so Wanda Smith is reluctant to leave him, even for a short while. She stays nearby even on Mondays when a nurse visits to give her a chance to run errands.
Ricky's father hasn't been around lately. A divorce is in the works.
A new wheelchair would cost $1,200. Government aid could take as much as a year to come through, and Wanda Smith believes her son doesn't have that much time.
A new wheelchair would allow Ricky to sit up more during the day, opening up opportunities that lolling on the floor don't permit. It could be used as a car seat and stroller too, meaning his world's boundaries could change.
"He deserves it. He's been through so much. He's been through more than an adult will ever have to go through in his life," Smith said recently in her basement apartment in Christiansburg.
Ricky's homebound teacher, Carol Hoge, is starting a donation drive to buy him the wheelchair.
No stranger to fund raising, Hoge, a former president of the Montgomery County Humane Society and an organizer of other charitable efforts, knows how helpful community participation can be.
"It's hard not to become involved when you're here every day and you see a need such as this," she said. "It's a reachable goal."
Wanda Smith feels the pressure of the deadline she is facing. She says Ricky could die within a year or less.
"Ricky's life is valuable and the quality of his life is important and he can't afford to wait for a wheelchair or anything else."
Cerebral palsy is not always terminal, but Ricky's case is severe. He contracted the disease, brought on by brain damage that impairs muscle movement, when he was born. A twin brother brother didn't make it out of the hospital, and doctors told Smith that Ricky would not be "salvageable."
"Salvageable is not a word you use with a human being. Salvageable is word you use with an old pair of shoes or an old car, but not a human life," Smith said, her eyes glinting.
Ricky has limited use of his hands, and communicates by making small sounds and facial expressions. He loves football on television, music on his earphones and being read to.
He can't go to school because he is susceptible to the infections that kids so easily spread to each other.
But Hoge said Ricky, who wears a tracheal tube in his throat to help him breathe, is nevertheless always happy and smiling. People who come into contact with him are drawn to him.
Susan Everett, his nurse, knows what Ricky can offer.
"He's a joy to be around. It gives you a different perspective on life. It makes you appreciate things you have more."
A fund, sponsored by the Christiansburg Jaycees, has been set up in Ricky's name at First National Bank, P.O. Box 600, Christiansburg, Va. 24073. Checks should be made payable to the Ricky Smith Fund.
by CNB