Stacee McKenzie - Women's History Month

My husband Dwayne and I met 18 years ago on the "Scotia Prince" cruise when it was operating in Portland. We have been married 14 years and have two boys, William (13) and Samuel (11). When William was a baby, we found out that he had a genetic disorder called "Neurofibromatosis, Type 1 (NF1)." This disorder caused his leg to be weak-boned and bowed, and ultimately his leg broke and could not heal. When he was 5 years old, we made the excruciating decision to have his leg amputated below the knee. We made it through this scary time with the wonderful prayers from the congregation of our church- "The New Life Church of Biddeford," and from an outpouring of help and support from the community of Old Orchard Beach. I sincerely want to thank the whole town, because there were a number of anonymous donations made to help our family. My friend Kathryn Smith planned amazing fundraising events to help with our family's medical bills. Paul Provencher and Kenny Blow helped build a porch for us with a detachable handicap ramp when William was in a wheelchair and too heavy for me to carry. Dave Twomey donated lumber. There was a craft fair and we were given money for Christmas gifts for our children. My friend, Beverly Russell, was an angel. With the help of the "Old Orchard Beach Community Animal Watch," she took our dogs to the veterinarian and paid for our vet bills. During this difficult time for my family, there was just an incredible outpouring of love from the community and these were only a handful of examples. Praise God for planting these wonderful people in our lives. Their kindness was an incredible blessing in our lives, and we will never forget everyone's generosity and love. Before his amputation, William had to use a walker to get around. I am happy to report that William has a prosthetic leg now that hinders him very little- he runs around with ease and he even takes Taekwondo.