Issue link: https://tmcpulse.uberflip.com/i/952446
t m c » p u l s e | m a r c h 2 0 1 8 24 * * * Jesus, 17, was born with a curved tibia, a cleft foot and only three fingers on each hand. In 2004, when he was 4 years old, his mother took him to their local hospital to have his right leg amputated and replaced with a splint and shoe lift. "It was a bit difficult to assimilate to the new condition," Patty said. "It was a little shocking for him whenever he woke up and no longer saw his leg." Patty, who was born without a tibia, wears a prosthetic leg, as well. She knew that Jesus, like her, would eventually outgrow his splint and require a series of prosthetic legs as he got older. A prosthetic was neces- sary for his quality of life, but very expen- sive—a basic prosthetic typically costs between $5,000 and $7,000 in the U.S. Patty works for a car insurance company filing accident claims, but as a single mother, she worried about how she would pay for prosthetics for both herself and her son. Later in 2004, a stranger on a bus told Patty about the Shriners – Houston outreach clinic in La Feria. She decided to take Jesus and get him outfitted for a prosthetic leg. Of course, Jesus doesn't remember any of this. Any memory of his amputation has evapo- rated from his mind. As far he is concerned, there was no physical disability to surmount, no trag- edy over which to triumph. He never felt limited by his missing limb. "Just like me, he doesn't really feel any different," Patty said. "We feel normal. There is no handicap." Over the years, as Jesus continued to receive care at the Shriners – Houston outreach clinic, he met more and more children who were afflicted by congenital neuro- and musculo-skeletal dis- orders that curbed their mobility and movement. Some kids had legs of different lengths, some had arms with no hands, some had club feet. "When I was younger, coming here and seeing other kids who were in worse situations than me, I used to just shrug it off," Jesus said. "But as I've gotten older, I came to realize and appreciate that everything is okay. I've seen my disability from different angles." He befriended other amputees, one of whom encouraged him to play soccer on a league created by a group of patients. An avid sports fan and natural athlete, Jesus joined the team and took up swimming and cycling shortly afterwards. He won competitions in both but fell in love with an altogether different physical activity: para dance sport, formerly known as wheelchair dance sport. Jesus is a member of the adaptive sports dance team at the Álvaro de Obregón Technical High School of the Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León. He and other students with lower limb deficiencies perform in special wheelchairs and are often paired with standing partners. "I have a lot of fun dancing, more than anything, because I do it with a team," Jesus said. "We're more than a team. We're a family. All of us have a lot of confidence and have fun." * * * In previous years, Mexican patients and their families who visited the Shriners clinic in La Feria were able to cross into the U.S. with humanitarian visas. However, in 2015, the Mexican border patrol suddenly put a stop to this. Stephenson and Barnes couldn't point to a specific reason why, but violent events in the area may have triggered tighter restrictions. That year, Reynosa erupted in violence when gunfights broke out and vehicles were set ablaze, leaving at least three dead. The mayhem, Mexican federal police said, was sparked by members of the Gulf Cartel who blocked the city roads and attacked federal forces. Over the past year, violence spiked in the city due to rival drug gangs fighting to control border smuggling routes and trafficking operations. Above: Jesus Badillo Garcia sits in the waiting room of the Shriners outreach clinic in La Feria. Right: Orthotist Dave Zaborowski pulls vacuuming plastic over a foot and ankle orthotic to make a brace for a patient at the Shriners workshop in Houston.