In 2020, Evan Kates was struck with a devastating brain aneurysm. It came out of nowhere, and left him with a severe seizure disorder and profound developmental disabilities. Evan, then 5, was left reliant on a feeding tube, and doctors told his family he would probably never talk again.
But years of physical, occupational and speech therapy have made a huge difference, his mother, Brooke Kates, told the Idaho Statesman. Evan has been able to re-learn how to eat solid foods and how to speak in sentences.
“We know a full recovery is not something that’s going to happen, but the goal is always progress where it’s possible,” Kates said during one of Evan’s appointments on Wednesday. Therapists fitted him for a wheelchair that day that would allow him to switch between sitting and standing positions to develop more muscle tone in his legs…