A high school junior with an extremely rare neurodegenerative disease was thrilled to leave his wheelchair behind and take to the skies. Ryan Alam went skydiving, taking the leap on a tandem jump with a member of the U.S. Army Parachute Team, the Golden Knights.
While a crowd of his fellow students at Potomac Falls High School in Virginia watched, Ryan and Sergeant First Class Chris Acevedo, a tandem team instructor, made the jump. The teen’s parents say he’s always wanted to be a stuntman, a football player or a soldier, so this sky-high adventure was right up his thrill-seeking alley.
Symptoms of Ryan’s disease (mitochondrial-membrane protein-associated neurodegeneration, or MPAN) started showing up when he was in elementary school, but it took years for doctors to diagnose him. His family has raised over $350-thousand for research and they’re helping him live his best life. “His dad and I decided we were going to give him as many experiences that we can while he’s here,” explains Ryan’s mom, Tuba. “As he would say, ‘living his life to the fullest.’”
Source: WJLA