Reconnecting with friends was one of Brett Fox’s favorite parts of the weekend. Fox, 10, recently spent the weekend in Edmonton at the War Amps 2011 Western Child Amputee Seminar.
“Everyone’s in the same boat. The best part was no one asked, what happened to you?” said Fox.
Fox, born a right arm amputee, has been attending the annual weekend events on and off since he was 18 months old.
“Some kids that come just had something happen to them so it’s all new to them,” he said of others who become amputees older in life after an accident. “So they’re still getting used to it and looking for advice.”
Fox said he’s never known any different, having grown up an amputee. This is the first year he’s purchased an aesthetic attachment for hockey, but hasn’t used it yet, and is not sure if he’ll need to.
Over the weekend, which marked War Amps 30th anniversary of hosting Child Amputee seminars, Fox attended various sessions that dealt how to stay safe, active and how to deal with bullying. “I met a whole bunch of new kids. I really like just hanging out with my friends,” he said of reconnecting with other child amputees he doesn’t get to see as often. Ages range from newborn to 18, with some of the older kids who have been through the program, offering support as junior counselors.
“It’s really an informal session,” said his mom. “It’s lots of round table discussion where you carry on a legacy of war amps and learn more about the program,” she said.
