Man fulfills dream of walking daughter down the aisle after leg amputation
By Joshua Davis
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WILKESBORO, North Carolina (WXII) — Chris Handy, a 50-year-old father, overcame the challenge of losing part of his leg to walk his daughter, Noelle, down the aisle at her wedding in June.
His journey began on January 1, when he went down to the basement barefoot and ended up with a splinter in his toe, which led to an infection.
The infection caused his leg to swell to his ankle and resulted in a low-grade fever. After consulting with doctors, Handy made the difficult decision to amputate his leg below the knee.
“We made the determination to go ahead and take the leg below the knee, rather keep doing small operations to try to save it,” he said.
His daughter, Noelle Shumate, expressed her concern, saying, “I was really worried. It’s always hard, because you think your parents are invincible, and then you get, you know, to the point where their health is not where it used to be.”
Handy spent several months in the hospital, followed by physical therapy, which he described as a humbling experience.
“To lay on your back in a hospital bed from January until April 2, whenever I ended up losing my leg, yeah, I laid in the hospital bed for that many months and then turned around and having to do physical therapy. It’s very humbling experience,” he said.
Despite the challenges, Handy was determined to walk his daughter down the aisle. “We’re going to get it done. I’ll find a way, whatever it took,” he said.
Physical therapists at Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist supported Handy in adapting to his prosthetic leg, helping him build strength over seven days.
Dr. Walter Davis, Medical Director at the Sticht Center Rehab, noted Handy’s focus on regaining function.
“He was so focused on the function, he was really looking to the therapist to teach him how to get out of bed, first, how to get to the bathroom on his own, how to get in and out of a wheelchair, and then how to walk,” Davis said.
Kelsey Robinson, a physical therapist at the Sticht Center Rehab, shared how they simulated an entire wedding for Handy to practice walking down the aisle and even the first dance.
“We basically were able to simulate an entire wedding, and let him practice walking down the aisle. And then he also got to, later in his stay, practice the first dance as well. And I can just tell you, you could hear a pin drop in that room. Everybody was speechless,” Robinson said.
When the big moment arrived, Handy was nervous about stepping on his daughter’s dress, but he successfully walked her down the aisle using a cane.
“That flowing dress scared the crap out of me. I just knew I was gonna step on it. I was gonna ruin something. It was gonna be for God and everybody but I used the cane and walked her down the aisle, and didn’t have an issue doing the transition ever to the grass. So it’s great,” Handy said.
Noelle reflected on the experience, saying, “To walk down the aisle with him was just, it’s something I always dreamed about, and it didn’t happen how I always dreamed about. But it was much more than that. It was perfect, because we got to do it together.”
Handy is now back to work and has even walked his other daughter around her college campus. He emphasized the importance of mindset in physical therapy, saying it makes the difference in getting back on your feet.
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