Patrick Ivison,

Patrick was injured at 14 months old and has grown up in a wheelchair.  At 10 years old, he and his mother, Jennifer, decided to improve Patrick’s life and started at Project Walk. It has been four years since that first day and his improvement is significant. At 13 years post injury Patrick is regaining control of his body. Recently he controlled movement in his bad hand for the first time ever and he is now beginning to move his legs and take a few assisted steps. He has gained enough independence to meet his first goal -- go to college without his mother -- which he happily announced to a local TV reporter when he was 10.  Today Patrick’s goal is to walk (with or without aids) when he goes to college.

When he was first injured, the traditional thought process was that Patrick would never improve and growing up in the wheelchair would not be a problem. However, it did become a problem. Patrick developed growth deformities, a direct result of the wheelchair. Several corrective surgeries were attempted and today these growth issues are the biggest hurdles standing in his way of walking.

Patrick could easily resent life but instead he is a force of nature. He enjoys life. Patrick and his sister are being raised in a loving home with a single mom and his grandparents. He has a 3.5 grade point average; he participates in all types of adaptive sports; he is currently working on a college scholarship so he can continue his life with a higher education; and he is a motivational speaker. Patrick is a role model for Project Walk where so many people are inspired by this young man, his outlook on life, and his focused work ethic. We use the knowledge we have attained through Patrick’s journey to teach other parents how to prevent the body of a child from adapting to the wheelchair environment and to change the outcome of the child’s physical development to allow a chance for regaining function and walking once again. We educate the parents on how to safely and effectively perform the exercises needed to allow a child to grow in a proper fashion. With our home-based programs, the parents do all the work at home without any specialized equipment and there is no need to travel except for program updates.

Patrick and his family understand that most of the problems he lives with today could have been prevented but he doesn’t look back at what could have been done differently, he just works harder on what he can control in his future. Patrick and Jennifer want to help other families facing the circumstances surrounding an injured child and have volunteered to share their experiences and advice regarding his development and growth.  

If you would like to contact Patrick or his mom, Jennifer, please email them at Patrick@projectwalk.org. You can also Help Patrick Walk by going to his website.

Be sure to join us on Saturday, October 24, and celebrate with us as Patrick takes steps at our 2009 Steps to Recovery celebration and fundraiser.  For more information on the 2009 Steps to Recovery event, please contact Tiffany at 760.431.8568 or tiffanyd@projectwalk.org.