Braelynn Bodman has never been able to stand or walk on her own, but now she has a chance to take bike rides with her mom and dad—and you can help make that happen.
At fourteen months old, Braelynn was diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). This means she’s missing the gene that makes a protein that would allow her to voluntarily move her muscles. Because her body doesn’t produce this protein, the muscles slowly atrophy.
Children with SMA continue to progressively get weaker as they get older and can lose their ability to move, eat, and breathe over time.
Braelynn’s parents, Maylia and Ryan Bodman of Niverville, were able to get her into a clinical trial in Chicago in 2018. So far the treatment she received there has stopped the progression of her disease.
But Braelynn’s day to day life can be challenging.
“Braelynn’s life is full of medical appointments, daily physical therapy, braces she has to wear, and equipment, like special seating, her wheelchair, and a respiratory machine she uses to strengthen her lungs and support her chest wall,” says Maylia. “Daily life has its extra challenges, as she is dependent on us for most things like eating, getting dressed, and even playing with toys. However, she is like any other kid and was attending daycare before COVID-19 happened. She will start Kindergarten this September, has friends she likes to play with, and is really into rainbows, unicorns, and the colour pink. She loves family movie nights with popcorn, and would love to have a bike and go for bike rides!”
Braelynn needs a bike that offers full trunk and head support, and these types of bikes can cost up to $10 000, a price that is well outside the budget of most average families.
But Maylia found a contest called the Great Bike Giveaway, which is going to award these adapted bikes to children who cannot ride conventional bikes because of a disability. Once she learned of the contest, she entered Braelynn.
“You choose the bike that would be best suited for your child’s needs and people can vote for your child,” Maylia explains. “If your child gets the most votes in the bike category they’re in, then they win the bike. They also give away some bikes by random draw and have set it up so families can also fundraise for the bike at a discounted price if their child doesn’t happen to win by votes or through the random draw. Voting ends on March 10 and the fundraising portion ends March 24. If you win by votes or by the random draw, then any amounts people have donated toward your child’s campaign will go towards another child getting their bike!”
The bike the Bodmans have chosen is called the Tandem Duet. It has special seating in the front that can also be detached and used as a wheelchair. Braelynn would have a great view sitting in the front while Maylia or Ryan pedal the bike.
“Having this special bike would be amazing for our family,” Maylia continues. “Since Braelynn’s diagnosis, we have always been determined to give her the same experiences as other children and find ways to adapt things for her needs. Recreation activities can be particularly challenging, though, even though we do our best to be creative. We love to be outside together as a family and often go for walks with Braelynn in her powerchair, or we play powerchair soccer on the driveway. But a bike ride is not something we can do without an adapted bike.”
Braelynn has often commented that she wishes she had a bike when she sees other kids on theirs, and last Christmas she was disappointed when she didn’t get one.
“As parents seeing their child go through so many things a child shouldn’t have to go through, it would mean the world to take her on bike rides, give her that classic childhood experience and just let her be a kid and have some fun.”
If you’d like to help get Braelynn her special bike, you can visit the Great Bike Giveaway to vote for her.
A final note from the Bodman family: “From the bottom of hearts, thank you to everyone taking the time to vote and help us to get this bike for Braelynn. We are so grateful for this community’s support!”
