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42 °F Forecast | Road Cams Monday, January 24, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Opportunities Moving to Southern Oregon? MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend December 12, 2004 Stacy Gregory, 26, has outgrown his prosthesis, which is being held together with a spare bolt and duct tape. Checking it is Forest Sexton, owner of Spectrum Orthotics and Prosthetics of Medford, who replaced crucial parts for free. Mail Tribune / Roy Musitelli Holiday support Light One Candle: Even a go-getter like Stacy Gregory could use a little generosity EDITOR’S NOTE: "Light One Candle" is an annual Mail Tribune feature that focuses on the specific need of an individual, agency or organization. For more information, e- mail reporter JoNel Aleccia at [email protected] . By JONEL ALECCIA Mail Tribune Seventeen years after losing his left leg to cancer, Stacy Gregory has no qualms about showing his prosthesis to strangers. The tall young man with the bright smile and the silver earrings cheerfully strips down to his boxers, the better for technician Forest Sexton to examine his limb. "No problem," says Gregory, 26, of Central Point. But Sexton, the owner of Spectrum Orthotics and Prosthetics Inc. in Medford, finds plenty of problems in what he sees. After six years of daily use, Gregory’s fake leg is failing. Advertisement The metal knee joint won’t lock, and it’s held together with a spare bolt from Gregory’s garage. The outer padding has long since shredded, revealing tufts of foam wrapped in duct tape. The covering for the socket that supports the mid-thigh prosthesis has been sewn and re-sewn to repair tears. Most disturbing, the limb made to support a teenager three inches shorter and 50 pounds lighter no longer fits the 6-foot-4, 180-pound young man who works double shifts at Medford Rehabilitation, a nursing home. "It’s a horrible prosthesis," says Sexton. "He would be as well served strapping on a broomstick with duct tape." Gregory knows too well that he needs a new leg. The ill-fitting limb distorts his gait, making every step a struggle. He suffers from frequent pressure sores caused by an improperly positioned socket. And, sometimes, he falls. "He’s very fortunate that his prosthesis did not snap in half while he was lifting a patient," Sexton says. But neither Gregory nor his Central Point parents can afford the more than $22,000 it will cost to get a new one. His mother, Sandy Gregory, works at Harry & David in Medford. She used up her insurance benefit of one lifetime limb when her son was 12. The Shriners provided additional limbs when Gregory was a juvenile, but once he became an adult, the benefit stopped. He hasn’t worked at the nursing home long enough to qualify for insurance and it could pay only about $5,000 if and when he does. Co-workers moved by Gregory’s dedication to his elderly patients and by his cheerful attitude have begun raising money to help him replace his leg. They suggested him as a candidate for the Mail Tribune’s eighth annual "Light One Candle" holiday series. "He spends so much time on his feet," says Veronika Comerchero, a physical therapy assistant who works with Gregory. "It is so demanding physically, walking up and down the halls, getting people up and out of bed, to the wheelchair, to the toilet. It’s such a demanding job for a person who has four perfectly healthy limbs." Gregory, who developed leukemia at 9 and required a bone marrow transplant at 16, says his brushes with death made him want to care for others. "They told me I had an 18 percent chance of living," he says. "I’m great now. I’m glad I’m here." Those who work with him say he has a gift for making patients feel comfortable. Even elderly women don’t mind the young man who provides personal care, Comerchero says. "Sometimes the male caregivers, they don’t have the gentle touch," she says. "There need to be a lot more Stacys there. A lot of people don’t have the same heart for care." Sexton was so moved by Gregory’s compassion, he agreed to take a look at his prosthesis last week. It was in such bad shape that Sexton replaced a few crucial parts for free, just to keep Gregory on his feet. "One event to that leg and he can’t work any more," Sexton says. Ideally, the prosthesis should have been replaced every year or two, at most, while Gregory was growing. For adults, the replacement cycle is three to five years. Cost for a mid-thigh prosthesis like the one Gregory requires ranges from $12,000 to $50,000, Sexton says. But the Medford businessman says he already writes off as much as $70,000 a year in donated equipment and services to local amputees. He’s willing to assist Gregory, but he and others are hoping community members will join in, too. "He’s a young man who deserves to work and produce and there’s no help," Sexton says. Gregory says he’s used to getting by on his old leg and he’ll continue to use it if he has to. It doesn’t stop him from riding quad cycles up hills around his home. "I like to go fast," he admits. If he had a new limb, though, Gregory figures he’d be even more helpful to the clients he serves. "They told me if I don’t work for two years, I could get some help," he says. "But I’ve worked since I’ve been 12. I’m not going to stop now." To help Gregory, call Spectrum Orthotics and Prosthetics Inc. at 734-2435. 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