City of Kentwood and Mary Free Bed Partner to Host Limb Loss Awareness 5K on April 27
The City of Kentwood and Mary Free Bed Orthotics & Prosthetics + Bionics are teaming up to recognize Limb Loss and Limb Difference Awareness Month with the Mary Free Bed Prosthetics Limb Loss Awareness 5K on Saturday, April 27. The all-ages, all-abilities event will kick off with packet pickup at 9 a.m. at Veterans Memorial […]
Mary Free Bed Orthotics & Prosthetics + Bionics Goes Global with ROMP
For the second year in a row, members of the Mary Free Beds Orthotics & Prosthetics + Bionics team traveled from Michigan to Zacapa, Guatemala. Their mission? Restore hope and freedom … globally. The trip was made possible through philanthropic support from the Mary Free Bed Guild. Six O&P+B team members joined the Range of […]
Mask fabrication added to list of creative skills on Custom Seating and Assistive Tech team
Mary Free Bed’s Custom Seating and Assistive Technology team is a creative bunch that finds solutions to life’s everyday challenges. From customized seating fabrication to tools that help patients complete tasks, there are few needs these therapists and tech experts can’t meet. So when the need arose to protect Mary Free Bed patients, visitors and staff members during the COVID-19 pandemic, they rose to the challenge. “Once we heard of the […]
The Ghost Inside drummer, Andrew Tkaczyk, rocks his rehabilitation with ‘Dr. Drums’ Bloom
During the 5 weeks Andrew Tkaczyk was an inpatient at Mary Free Bed, he developed a bond of trust with his doctor, not only because of his medical care but through their mutual passion for drumming. And now “Dr. Beats” – Andrew’s nickname – and “Dr. Drums,” aka Dr. Stephen Bloom, are working together with […]
MyoPro’s myoelectric device helps Cindy regain use of arm after 19 years
UPDATE: Cindy’s amazing story has drawn attention from area media. The story also highlights the innovation of our care team and our relationship with Sparrow Hospital in Lansing. Here are links to those reports: Lansing State Journal WILX-TV 10 Cindy Pohl has been unable to use her left arm since being injured in a car […]
Adaptive snowboarding gets Raphael back on the slopes
Raphael Correa, a patient of Mary Free Bed’s Orthotics & Prosthetics program, recently met a new, post-accident goal – snowboarding at Timber Ridge Ski Area in Gobles, Mich. After he spent a month in a wheelchair Correa got his walking leg in November 2014 and has been working and training ever since. Raphael’s goal is to get back to […]
I’ll keep going until I can’t go anymore’
Thirty-four-year-old Nate Denofre doesn’t have much use for the term “disabled.” Born without legs below the knee – a result of amniotic band syndrome – Nate prefers to focus on what is possible for him to do, instead of what isn’t. His latest undertaking embodies the odds-defying spirit that’s driven him to live a life […]
Scoliosis treatment uses teamwork and technology
Scoliosis, a sideways curvature of the spine, affects an estimated 7 million Americans. The spinal condition typically is diagnosed in childhood or adolescence, often discovered during back-to-school “well child” checkups. Mary Free Bed’s Orthotics & Prosthetics (O&P) professionals are well-versed in helping to fit patients of all ages with custom scoliosis braces. These specialized orthotic devices are […]
New pink helmet elicits lots of smiles [Photo Gallery]
Violet Pratt is a spunky 4-year-old. With big brown eyes and a wide smile, she twirls and laughs as she waits with her family in an Orthotics & Prosthetics examination room at Mary Free Bed. On this May afternoon, Violet is here to receive a helmet – “a pink one,” she tells Kim Nequist, the […]
Orthotics & Prosthetics now open in West addition
Mary Free Bed’s Orthotics & Prosthetics department has officially moved into its new home in the state-of-the-art West addition of Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital. All O&P services — prosthetics, orthotics, assistive technology and OrthoSEAT — are now housed together in one convenient location (Suite 1100 at 235 Wealthy St. SE). The move was completed […]
Orthotics & Prosthetics relocates to upgraded facilities
Grand Rapids, Mich. – Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital’s orthotics and prosthetics patients will have access to enhanced services and experience improved patient care as the hospital’s Orthotics & Prosthetics Corporation moved into new and high-tech office space over the weekend. For the first time, the following four orthotics and prosthetics services will be housed […]
Prosthetic legs don’t deter Grand Rapids man
Due to complications from diabetes, Dan Feather’s left leg had to be amputated below the knee. He was 73 at the time and, after a couple weeks of rehabilitation at Mary Free Bed, was ready to return home to his wife, Wilma. Later, the same circulation problem took his left leg. That was two years […]
A Man with Two Prosthetic Legs Receives a Change for the Better
When he was only 7 years old, Harry Zemmer received his first pair of artificial legs from Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital. “They were like hollow logs,” recalls Harry, a 60-year-old Ann Arbor man who was born without fully developed lower limbs. “There were no knees.” With hydraulics, microprocessors, braking mechanisms, energy-saving technology and myriad […]
Woman Avoids Foot Surgery after Wearing Boots Made by Mary Free Bed’s Orthotics Program
Guest post: Laura Guzman shares her experience with the Mary Free Bed Orthotics Program. This is her story. Four years ago, I found out that after being diabetic for 45 years, the bones in my feet had softened and broken. I had a condition known as Charcot foot. There is no cure, but there are […]
A New Perspective on Life After Brain Injury
Jon is not the same person he was before the accident. According to his wife, he’s much milder and nicer. He appreciates his friends and family differently, and makes sure to say “I love you”. Many people who are told they weren’t expected to live tend to have at this new kind of perspective on […]
Cancer survivor plays wheelchair tennis against able-bodied competitors
by Kate Snider Jess Sporte, 23, lost her leg to cancer when she was just 4 months old. Jess uses crutches for short distances and a wheelchair for longer distances. She received outpatient care from the Center for Limb Differences at Mary Free Bed until she was 21 years old. Growing up, Jess watched from the sidelines as […]
Struck by drunk driver, amputee prepares for Paralympics
by Kate Snider Melanie Johnson was riding her motorcycle to her nephew’s football game in September 2004 when she was struck by a drunk driver. The life-changing accident happened just 5 miles from home. “I knew it was really bad when I heard the helicopter,” Melanie said. “I remember thinking, if they had to call […]
Staying positive with Maria Penland
by Jess Venlet Mary Free Bed launched a new advertising campaign June 1. This post is the first in a series of the rehabilitation and recovery stories of all the real Mary Free Bed patients featured in our new commercials and billboards. Just moments after I say, “Thank you, Maria. Bye.” and end our phone […]
Expert Information: Amputation & Prosthesis
Dr. Benjamin Bruinsma has worked at Mary Free Bed for nearly 20 years. He’s the director of the amputee, orthopedic, and stroke programs. Therapy and prosthesis fitting A prosthesis is a man-made substitute for a missing body part. It helps with function and mobility, and may give you more confidence in your appearance. The time […]
Scott Rigsby, Double-Amputee Ironman
Scott Rigsby, the first double-leg amputee athlete to finish the grueling 140-mile Ford Ironman Marathon. Scott came to Grand Rapids in March to speak to the audience about his life, his book “UnThinkable,” and the importance of an active lifestyle. The event, “No Finish Line in Site,” was sponsored by Mary Free Bed, Gazelle Sports and […]