Many students look forward to the end of the school year as a time of rest and relaxation, with plans of pool parties, beach trips and other vacation activities. One student in particular, however, has a different summer vacation ahead of him.
Recent news that campus history teacher Kori Friesen’s third-grade son, Micah, will undergo an amputation surgery on his left foot because of a discrepancy in leg length promises a tough few upcoming months. This procedure will make the next stretch of road difficult, but will provide a lifetime of freedom he has not yet experienced.
Although Micah’s condition has just become a major issue over the last couple of years, it has been present as long as he has been alive. At two months old Micah’s parents discovered that he had one leg longer then the other, and after visiting doctors they found he was born with a condition called Proximal Focal Femoral Deficiency (PFFD).
“The news was that he would have a hard time crawling, walking, and being active, and his discrepancy was estimated at 9-11 cm if we did nothing,” Friesen said. “We were devastated; it felt like the death of a dream for our baby boy.”
After being introduced to Shriners Hospital in Sacramento, Friesen and her husband began to hope that they could fix Micah?s leg with different procedures over time, the final one being a horrific year-long leg lengthening procedure that would hopefully cause his legs to level by the age of 21. Although they saw two miracles early in the process and have not yet had to do any procedures, more information from doctors has taken them a different way.
“Over a year ago at our regular checkup we discovered that his ankle was underdeveloped,” Friesen said. “The doctors then told us that in the end after all the procedures we would still have to fuse his ankle, in theory still giving him a “bum” leg. At this time Doctors told us that our best chance of giving Micah a life of activity would be to amputate and give him a new foot, to do a “one-and-done” and no more procedures other then that.”
The news was difficult for them to accept, as for eight years they had been on board to fix the problem, not to give him a permanent one. A lot of tears, fasting, prayer and talking helped them to come to terms with this recent news.
“We were in shock when we heard this,” Friesen said. “We knew in our minds what the best decision was but our hearts needed to catch-up. We also knew that somehow this little guy needed to be a part of this very big decision.”
Through this decision-making journey, Friesen and her husband recognized that they as parents had an opportunity to live out their faith in a very open way with Micah. Choosing to be honest, to not paint a rosy picture but provide truth, they did their best to present to him both roads so he could decide. Road one was lots of surgeries, weak but even legs and a fused ankle, and road two was surgery but a new foot, level legs and endless possibilities.
Just before the decision needed to be made, Micah had a conversation with his Friesen about the upcoming choice.
“‘Mom I made my decision,’ he told me,” Friesen said. “‘I made my decision. I want a new foot. I’m scared, but I am going to trust the Lord. It will be ok,’ he said. In that moment I realized just how brave he was. This was a decision he came to all on his own.”
Believing that he wasn’t ready last year, when the surgery was originally scheduled, the Friesens decided to wait, knowing that Micah would need to struggle a bit in order for him to want to move forward. As activities like playing soccer, walking up and down stairs and even grocery shopping became more and more difficult, and at the end of the year he decided that he was ready to do it in the summer.
“As May 16th has been approaching we have seen God?s perfect timing,” Friesen said. “His discrepancy has been growing and walking on his tiptoe has gotten more difficult. We always thought the biggest surgery wouldn’t be until late junior high or freshman year, but God knew all along that this would all happen now in third grade. The journey to this point has been so incredible to look at and see his hand in every bump and turn. I feel like I can visually see the puzzle pieces floating together.”
The reception of this news by the elementary student body prompted them to set up a special chapel dedicated to Micah, in which Friesen shared Micah’s story with the kids and a teacher led them in a prayer for Micah.
“I was glad that they prayed for me so I can trust for hope from God,” Micah said. “It felt awesome that so many people were supporting me.”
Friesen appreciated the care and concern the students and staff showed for her son, and was excited that they fulfilled her hope of a community to surround him as he faces this life-altering experience.
“This chapel was very emotionally overwhelming in such a good way,” Friesen said. “It felt like a full circle moment from the point of choosing to enroll Micah as a kinder knowing this dreaded day would come, all the way to the chapel that demonstrated the foundation for that decision five years ago. We wanted him to be at FC when all this went down, to have a community of people around him, a smaller school site, and families and teachers that knew and cared for him.”
When the news reached FC parents, they sprang into action, setting up food drop-offs, transporting kids and offering countless words and tokens of encouragement. One parent, U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel Shiloh Briggs, presented to Micah an American flag flown with him in all of his combat missions in Iraq with a special message written for Micah.
“I have flags and I always look for brave people to give them to,” Briggs said. “My wife told me the story about him and I thought he was deserving. These flags have been with me through a lot, all over the country of Iraq, at night when I was scared and tired. I just wanted to give him some encouragement and let him know he’s not alone.”
Although they are scared, Friesen knows that God is ultimately in control and already knew the journey long before they did, and that this journey and every journey are meant to glorify Him and encourage others.
“Micah asked me the other day if I thought God could still do a miracle and that he wouldn?t have to go through this,” Friesen said. “I responded, ‘What if not fixing your leg is the miracle?’ His reply was, ‘By going through this I can help others, huh mom?'”
Micah will have his foot amputated, May 16, right below his ankle, and his heel and ankle will be fused to make one solid weight-bearing nub. He will then be in recovery for 13 weeks total- six weeks in a cast, two to three weeks in a pressure sock and then, if all goes well, about one month of fittings for his new prosthesis.
For updates on Micah, visit Friesen’s blog, “One Brave Boy“.
A mealTrain had been started to provide meals for the Friesen family in the few weeks following the surgery. If you would like to help, contact Dawn Hinton for information.
This writer can be reached on Twitter at @JennaWeimer42. Follow The Feather Online via Twitter: @thefeather.
For more features, see the May 5 article, Food truck party promotes Parkway, Fresno wildlife rescue.
