Liam's Lift

Liam needs a lift, and you can give him one.

 

On March 12, 2018, William Michael, known as Liam, was born happy and healthy. Unfortunately, there was an invisible condition that would soon be discovered by his parents, Scott and Megan.

 

When Liam was one month old, his parents noticed that he moved his arms and legs less than he initially had. At four months old, he was diagnosed with low muscle tone, testing would show that Liam had Spinal Muscular Atrophy Type 1. At less than half a year old, Liam received monthly spinal taps as the only approved treatment.

 

At seven months old, Liam became critically ill. He spent the next month and a half in the hospital, where he was approved for experimental therapy. At nine months old, treatment began. For the next two years, he would be a patient in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit on and off, going on countless trips to doctors and specialists. There would be too many physical therapy appointments to count.

 

Despite constant therapy from an early age, Liam still suffered from symptoms of this disease. In July 2021, doctors implanted growing rods to help combat a severe curvature of the spine. Having these growing rods improved his breathing immensely. He went from requiring a ventilator daily for 23 hours, to being able to spend 11 hours a day without needing assistance breathing.

 

Liam has always been one of the happiest children you’ll ever see. Despite spending his whole life receiving invasive medical treatment and having all of the daily physical limitations he has, he wakes up with a smile on his face every single day.

 

As Liam continues to grow, the Broome County Council of Churches wants to make sure Liam's mobility issues will not prevent him from going in and out of his home. The Council's Ramp-it-Up Youth Initiative, through the Faith-in-Action Program, wants to install a mechanical lift at Liam's home. This lift will allow Liam to go in and out of his house unassisted as he grows up, something he will not be able to do otherwise.

 

Though we have experience with over 175 builds, installing a lift will be new territory for us. The price will be more than three times what our average ramp cost will be. We believe that despite the costs, a lift is the best option for Liam and his family. We believe that they deserve the best and hope to provide it for them.

 

We need your support. We do not have the funding to support this project ourselves.

 

Please help Liam by donating today so he can get the lift he needs. If we raise any money above our projected goal it will be used to construct more ramps in Broome county. These ramps will allow people to have free access entering their homes. For every additional $55 raised, we can build one foot of ramp and bring people one step closer to independence.

 

Learn more about Liam and his family below: