After Leg Amputation, Child Re-Defines What it Means to Risk Life and Limb

When Vincent Lynick, was born in 2014, his parents, Sally and, Michael, of Burnsville, MN, did not know anything was wrong with his leg. But when he was 2 days old, doctors told them Vincent was missing the tibia bone in his left leg. That’s the big bone that connects knee-to-ankle.

Vincent’s congenital disorder, tibial hemimelia, is extremely rare; it’s 1 in a million to be missing that bone. Sally said, “We were in shock when they said the only treatment for that would be amputation above the ankle.”

Upon receiving the news, the young parents felt completely devastated. “We were not expecting anything like that to happen to our family,” Sally said. “We didn’t know what Vincent’s life was going to look like. We didn’t know if he was going to be able to run and jump and do normal things.”

So they went through a grieving process. They felt sad. Angry. Confused. But family and friends helped them heal. And just having faith. Sally said, “I remember just pleading with God, saying, ‘Please give us a miracle, or help us know this is going to be OK.'”

And five years into their journey, everything is OK. Sally said there have been hard parts, of course, but there have been many blessings the Lynicks said they never would have ever expected. “What our family has been through has really changed our perspective on life,” Sally said. “We feel like we know what’s important … and what’s not important.”

Sally said she started using CaringBridge when Vincent was 6 months old. She had followed other CaringBridge pages in the past, and so thought it would be a good way keep family connected. Michael’s family is out East, and they don’t get to see Vincent and big sister, Juliana, as often as everyone wishes.

CaringBridge seemed like a good place to write and post pictures, Sally said, but also to have control over who could view things. She said she wanted to be able to invite family members and friends to read Vincent’s CaringBridge site.

All these years later, Sally still writes on CaringBridge. “I like everyone to see that Vincent is just a regular boy, in every sense of the word,” she said. “He is on his sixth prosthetic leg, and he has one speed, which is fast.”

Vincent climbs on everything. If there’s a tree, he’s climbing it. If there’s a swing set, he’s climbing it. If there’s a railing … furniture … table … counters … everywhere he shouldn’t be climbing. Or jumping.

Sally said that as a parent, it is so hard to see your child go through anything you can’t fix. “You can’t make it better. So you have to power through it,” she said. “I believe there is purpose in everything, and with the support of your family, faith and friends, you can find the best in a situation.”

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