Faces of Frazier: The Chase is On!

Chase Ford is just one of many miracles at the Frazier Rehab Institute. When he was only two years old, Chase's life changed forever after playtime on the couch with his brother turned tragic. Jumping up and down, Chase fell backwards and hit his head on the wooden armrest--something I'm sure we've all done in our childhood--and as fate would have it, he was paralyzed from the neck down. "When he got hurt, I asked one doctor the prognosis," says Renee Ford, Chase's mother. "He said, 'Your son will be in a wheelchair forever.'"

But this past April, Chase proved them wrong; he walked across the finish line of the Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon without assistance (photo above)!

The Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and University of Louisville's own Susan Harkema, Ph.D., pioneered and funded Frazier's Locomoter Training that brought Chase from zero mobility from the neck down to being able to walk over 100 yards without assistance. The program involves suspending patients in harnesses over treadmills while therapists move their legs to simulate walking. Chase was the youngest child to ever undergo this type of therapy.

"When I first got the opportunity to work with Chase he was unable to stand, and he was unable to walk by himself without assistive devices," says Lee Smith, Chase's physical therapist for the last year. Now, Chase looks forward to running again.

On the possibilities, Lee notes, "We're finding out about what we are capable of doing." On the great demand for Frazier's cutting edge therapy, "There are a lot of other people out there that we could be able to help if we just had the funding."

Want more on Chase and his inspiring journey? You simply must check out this video!

Special thanks to the Fords for allowing me to share Chase's powerful story.