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In one way, Lucas Olenhaus is a lot like other teenage boys -- he loves football, specifically, the Pittsburgh Steelers.
But in many ways, the 16-year-old from New Jersey is very different.
Lucas has suffered from several serious health problems throughout his life that have left him without the ability to walk, talk or hear.
Lucas was born March 23, 1999, and was a healthy baby boy, Denise says on the GoFundMe page.
Around 13 months, he started having seizures. When he was 15 months old, he had two grand mal seizures that lasted 45 to 60 minutes. That caused him to lose his hearing.
Over the next few months, he rapidly lost the ability to do much of anything, Denise writes.
“He went from a healthy, functioning baby to basically a rag doll,” Denise says.
She said doctors weren’t sure what was wrong with her baby boy.
He was diagnosed with having a neuro-progressive degenerative disorder, and developed asthma around the age of 2.
As he’s gotten older, Denise says her son has had pneumonia more than 150 times.
Lucas has several other serious medical issues. He was recently diagnosed with the second-most severe form of epilepsy.
Denise says they recently found out Lucas has optic atrophy type 3. This means the nerve that connects the brain to the eyes will slowly deteriorate until Lucas can no longer see.
As of now, Denise says her son uses his eyes to convey how he’s feeling.
So like any loving mother, Denise wants her son to see everything he’s dreamed of seeing before he loses his eyesight completely.
“What we are asking for is help to get him to the places he has not seen yet before he loses his eye sight,” Denise says.
The family started a GoFundMe page to raise money to complete a bucket list for Lucas.
“Lucas has two brothers and two sisters who love him to pieces and they, too, are trying hard to raise money do things with him,” Denise Olenhaus wrote on the GoFundMe page. “As a family, we are all devoted to Lucas and would love to be able to see his Pittsburgh Steelers.”
After making some progress with various connections, it was set up so Lucas could attend Sunday’s game against the Oakland Raiders.
Have a great time at the game, Lucas!
CLICK HERE for more information Lucas' life story and information on his GoFundMe page.
