Help a Child Run for the First Time with World of Children Award

Imagine not being able to walk to the market, tie your shoelaces or jump out of bed. Imagine not being able to go to school because you couldn’t walk there by yourself, or you were afraid that people might hurt you because of the way you looked. These are just a few challenges that 93 million children with a disability face every day. That’s why this summer, we’re running The Biofreeze San Francisco Marathon to give children with a limb disability the ability to walk, run and achieve their dreams.

We’re running to support children like Alex and Maverick, two young boys from Ecuador who are congenital amputees, meaning they were born without one of their legs. For Alex and Maverick, not having two legs meant not being able to walk to school, run, or play with friends. It meant not being able to do simple, everyday tasks by themselves. It also meant not looking forward to a life of independence and opportunity as they continued to grow into adulthood.

Simply being fitted with a prosthetic limb would improve their lives dramatically, but unfortunately, their families could not afford expensive medical care.

Then one day everything changed for Alex and Maverick. Their families were connected to one of the programs we are funding this year — A Leg To Stand On (ALTSO) — who fitted them with prosthetic limbs and enrolled them in rehabilitation and follow-up procedures to ensure their treatment was effective.

Now, they’re not just walking, but running. They are pictured here finishing their very first 5k race in Ecuador to help raise awareness and funds for other people with disabilities.

Run with us on July 27 to give children like Alex and Maverick the chance to run their own race. Funds raised by our team underwrites the cost of orthopedic care — including prosthetic limbs, leg braces and corrective surgery — for children with limb disabilities in developing countries.

World of Children Award has a 1st Half Marathon entry and Full Marathon entries left! To run with us, contact alison@worldofchildren.org