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Testimonials & Stories: Bridger Hunt & Thomas Johnson

on 21 Feb 2012 • from Michelle • filed in Ryan, Photos

Visiting sick children is nothing new for Ryan, he’s been doing it for years. It’s a rewarding and humbling honor that must be experienced to fully understand. In September, 2008, while preparing to compete at the Dew Tour in Salt Lake City, Ryan learned about Utah native, Bridger Hunt, an 11-yearold boy who was injured by shrapnel from an explosion created by a homemade metal fireworks device. Doctors compared Bridger’s injuries to those sustained by soldiers hit by roadside bombs in Iraq, not by a little boy who was innocently riding his bike around the neighborhood. Shrapnel obliterated the bones in Bridger’s left hip, pelvis, hip joint, and upper left leg, leaving his leg hanging by a flap of skin. The shrapnel tore through his abdomen, intestines, colon, bladder, severed a 6-inch section of his femoral artery and femoral nerve, and lacerated a portion of his femoral vein.

Bridger’s life was spared by the life-saving efforts of neighbors and paramedics and by the miraculous work of the highly skilled team of emergency doctors and surgeons. Ryan had the privilege of meeting Bridger and his family just 2 months after the accident. Ryan was moved by Bridger’s attitude in the face of so much pain and uncertainty. The doctors said Bridger would never walk again, but Bridger’s smile told a different story. Though this young skater was weak and pale he was determined to prove the doctors wrong and his resolve was contagious. Ryan left Bridger with his skateboard, the trophy he had just won and a financial contribution for his rehabilitation.

Today, Bridger is a straight A student, who due to his hard work and determination is walking. When asked what Ryan’s visit meant to him Bridger’s mother, Mindy, said “He wasn’t suppose to live, let alone ever walk again. Meeting Ryan helped Bridger to recover, it made the difference between walking and not walking. “ Stories like this are why the Sheckler Foundation exists, allowing us to turn a simple request to visit a sick child into the opportunity to create sustainable change.

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Ryan feels blessed to have achieved such early success with his goals in life. During his climb to reach the elite-level of competition in skateboarding, he as had to push through many tough challenges. He knows he is fortunate to be a Champion at the thing he enjoys the most. And he strives to share his compassion far beyond the skate park.
One of Ryan’s core concerns is for the children, and their families, who are battling childhood diseases. Maybe because of the challenges he has had to overcome, Ryan is humbled by the strength he sees in the eyes of the babies, kids, and teens that are fighting to survive pediatric illnesses.

At the Sheckler Foundation’s “Skate for a Cause” in 2010, the event raised monies and awareness for the “Make-A-Wish” group. In between competitions, Ryan took time to meet with children in treatment for cancer, as well as some survivors of this cruel disease. One of these kids, 8-year old skater Thomas Johnson, is pictured here with Ryan. They exchanged a few words of encouragement to each other, and Thomas’s face shows the joy he got from bonding with the guy who popped from the giant wall decal in his skate-themed room. Thomas had met the challenge of five years of harsh surgeries, chemo therapy and intense radiation. Although Thomas endured so much cancer treatment, the tumors returned, and only days before this event, Thomas began End-Of-Life care at home.

Thomas died 6-weeks after this picture was taken, but his Legend Lives On in his “TEAM THOMAS” community of 1000+ who raise funds for pediatric cancer research at local schools and the annual Cinco de Mayo ‘Reaching for the Cure’ run/walk put on by the Pediatric Cancer Research Foundation in Irvine, CA.

Thomas, in his own words, left us all with a simple quote: “We will be kind and loving to each others.” It looks like he and Ryan bonded on more than just skateboarding.

In loving memory of Thomas Johnson.

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