Guelph boy an inspiration to community as family puts hopes in procedure that will allow him to walk

By Martin Bauman

Citizens of Guelph are rallying around a family raising money for an operation for their 3-year-old son.

Chad and Melissa Mitchell are putting their hopes in a procedure that would enable their son Bentley — who has cerebral palsy — to finally walk on his own.

Bentley and his twin brother were born three months premature, weighing just over three pounds — “small enough to put in the palm of your hand,” as the Mitchells describe online. The Guelph boy was diagnosed shortly after his first birthday, with the news that a small brain bleed at birth had caused permanent damage.

At first, the Mitchells say doctors cautioned them that their son may never walk, talk, or crawl. Since then, he’s overcome those hurdles — learning to walk with a walker and cane, playing sports like soccer and sledge hockey, and developing into what his father describes as “a social butterfly.” Mitchell says he’s been amazed by Bentley’s determination throughout the whole process.

“It’s amazing, at three, his outlook on life, and his perspective on things. He never sees it as a limitation,” Mitchell says.

“He’s always kind of full force with everything.”

The Mitchells’ last hope is that their son could be able to walk and run unassisted, and to do so, they’ve decided on giving Bentley a surgery known as Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy — with the aim of eliminating his spasticity and enabling him to walk pain-free. The family says they’ve had to look outside of Ontario for help, and they’ve found a surgeon in St. Louis who has given them hope.

They started a GoFundMe page to raise money to cover the $100,000 cost of the procedure and post-treatment therapy, and within days, they’ve already seen donations flooding in.

Mitchell says the thought of finally seeing his son walking gives him chills.

“It would mean the world to us, and more importantly, the world to Bentley,” he says.

“I mean, just to have that chance to do something that most other children can do almost automatically, it would change his life forever.”

Visit the Mitchells’ GoFundMe page: http://www.gofundme.com/bentleysjourney

 

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