Your Dollars in Action
Many Firsts
Liam - Carmel, Indiana
Liam is a three-year-old boy from Carmel, Indiana. He has cerebral palsy and this year his family was awarded a $5000 grant for an adaptive stroller, physical, occupational and speech therapies and botox injections to help relax his muscles.
"He's a great person with a great sense of humor," says his mom, Meaghan. Liam likes to play with his two older brothers, ages five and nine. Needless to say, theirs is an active household.
Meaghan says receiving the grant was a huge relief. She says when they received the package with the bear and the approval letter, they were so excited. Because of the UHCCF grant, Liam has been able to receive additional therapy and botox injections and because of that, Liam is now starting to walk! The family’s insurance only covered 20 sessions of therapy per year, but now Liam is able to receive PT, OT and speech therapy weekly - and what a difference it has made! Because of the speech therapy he's been receiving, Meaghan says Liam is talking and interacting more with his brothers and the rest of the family. And Liam marked another first as well - starting Early Childhood Development classes.
Meaghan says a friend, who is a psychologist, told her about the UHCCF grants. She says she was especially glad to find an organization that offers help to middle-class families, like theirs, that are often not eligible for any other kind of assistance. And to any family with medical costs, she says she would definitely encourage them to apply. "It was the perfect thing for our family and it has really helped."