Let's save Alicja's legs.
I am the father of this little princess from the photo and I must do everything in my power to save her disabled legs. Alicja, our long-awaited baby, needs help from the world class specialists – they are the only people who are able to make her walk like healthy people do. We found them in Paley’s Institute and we are waiting for surgery. However, for this to happen we have to collect an enormous amount of money. We beg for your help... We love Alicja more than anything. Pregnancy was a dream come true for us and it was a capstone of our marriage. Parents never think that something might go wrong… But in our case our plans and hopes were crushed quickly – at some point the doctor informed us that our daughter’s femurs just stopped growing… Our joy was replaced with a huge anxiety. We had to cope with it ourselves, we didn’t tell it to anyone. We lacked courage but also we were deceiving ourselves, we hoped it wouldn’t be that bad… Neither grandparents nor our friends were aware of the situation. Until Alicja’s birth we didn’t know what to expect and what our baby girl is going to look like. All that remained was to put our faith in God. Alicja was born in the 32nd week of pregnancy, she weighted only 2,815 pounds. Not only were her legs disabled but also she suffered prematurity complications and the so-called Pierre Robin syndrome. So much adversity for someone so little… She had blood transfusion three times, we had to learn how to use a feeding probe. Our baby was suffering, our hearts were broken and our eyes were full of tears...Out of her many health issues and problems the biggest one is the condition of Alicja’s legs. She has twisted hip-joints and not fully grown femurs which are disproportionately short and deformed. Additionally, she was diagnosed with an unknown genetic defect which makes diagnosing and the recovery even more difficult. No one knows what influence it is going to have on her life for years to come so the only choice we have is to fight the visible enemy – Alicja’s problems with legs. While looking for help, we found Dr Paley’s Institute. They gave us hope and we are certain it is the right place for our daughter. During consultations they provided us with the treatment plan and guarateed that Alicja will be able to walk as if her legs were never disabled – it would be impossible to notice she had any problems at all! This is good news but there is more to the story – the surgery is extremely expensive and we can’t afford it...Alicja’s femurs have to be reshaped, her bones must be straightened and extended. The road to our daughter’s mobility is long and difficult but the most important thing is that we know where to go and what our goal is. Each day me and my wife are going to help our baby girl walk through her life – but our support won’t be enough. The costs of the surgery are too much for us to handle… This is why we ask you for your help. Adrian – Alicja’s proud dad