Clanton Crumbley is a boy who should not be alive according to a number of statistics. The nine-year-old child was born with a genetic abnormality so rare that it has been unofficially named after him “Clanton Syndrome.” Clanton’s illness caused hearing, sight, heart and kidney problems, and scoliosis, a severe curvature of the spine. He has also had speech problems for which he receives therapy.
As is typical, after the possibility of genetic problems was diagnosed at 19 weeks, the first suggestion was abortion, but the parents said no. When he was born, doctors recommended that Clanton's parents leave him in the hospital to die. He could not see or hear and his doctors thought he would not survive his first night. His parents, Philip and Kim Crumbley, refused to give up on their son.
Now, however, Clanton enjoys life at his school and is cherished by his parents and grandparents. Darrell Hood, his grandfather, said, “He loves life. He observes everything we take for granted. He’ll walk outdoors and look at the clouds and say, ‘Wow!’” Clanton loves movies and has learned to use computers in his first grade class.
His parents were warned that if Clanton caught a cold he might not survive and at first it was not planned to put him in school. But after Clanton survived a bout of meningitis, he started kindergarten. His father says it is good for him to be included with children his own age.
See also:
‘Miracle’ Boy Fights Rare Genetic Disorder
(This update courtesy of LifeSiteNews.com.)
