KTM makes teen's wish come true

News-Times reporter

Two days before Thanksgiving last year, doctors at Cincinnati Children's Hospital diagnosed 16-year-old Adam Wyatt with stage IV Hodgkin's lymphoma -- the most advanced stage for this disease.

While other families were getting ready to chow down on turkey with all the trimmings, Wyatt was starting to undergo extensive chemotherapy and radiation treatments.

In the spirit of the holiday, doctors allowed Wyatt to check out of the hospital for about four hours so he could have Thanksgiving dinner with his family.

"When you first get a diagnosis, it's just shock and then it's like how are we going to get through this," Wyatt's mother Lisa Grant said. "We've been very fortunate because we've had so many people that have just reached out to us and the people, as well as the nurses and doctor's at children's hospital were all just absolutely wonderful."

Doctors had discovered Wyatt had a mass in his neck and chest, as well as six nodules in his lung.

He has since had six rounds consisting of two different types of chemotherapy drugs injected in to his body, along with 14 days of radiation treatments.

"We didn't even realize he was sick," Grant said. "He was asymptomatic, so nothing we could really tell was going on. The only thing we did noticed was that he had a lymph node that was swollen on his neck that didn't go down after he recovered from a cold."

His parents contacted Kelly Kleinschmidt -- executive director at the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana chapter-- and told her about Wyatt's diagnosis. Grant told her how her son enjoyed hanging out with friends, playing video games, as well as his passion for riding dirt bikes.

Kleinschmidt contacted Amherst-based KTM North America, Inc. about a month ago and explained to them Wyatt's wish and they did not disappoint.

"It was an easy decision," Darin Gillis, the vice president of finance and treasurer for KTM said. "After hearing Adam's story and the passion he had for riding, it was probably one of the easiest things we've ever done and we're happy to be a part of it. It's not about KTM, it's about Adam and wanting to do something good for him and help him have some fun."

On Monday the company donated a new 2009 KTM 125cc dirt bike -- which is personalized with Wyatt's name on the seat -- plus a racing outfit, gloves, boots, helmet, a riding backpack filled with a water bottle, decals and other KTM merchandise.

Wyatt was able to try out his new bike on Amherst Meadowlarks Motorcycle Club's dirt track for the entire day.

Cincinnati-based X-treme Adventures Dirt Bike Skool also donated a bike training and safety course.

"It's awesome," Wyatt said.

His mother was even more overwhelmed at KTM's generosity.

"It's just amazing," Grant said choking back the tears. "I'm flabbergasted. Thank you."

The Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana chapter was founded in 1983.

Since then, the not-for-profit organization has granted more than 2,162 wishes for children with life-threatening medical conditions. This year, the Cleveland-based chapter is poised to fulfill the wishes for about 150 children from ages two-and-a-half to 18. Monetary donations can be made online at www.makeawishohio.org.

"It's tough times for everyone," Kleinschmidt said. "The economy is not the greatest and to reach out to a company and have them embrace this so wonderfully as they have has really been very heartwarming."

The Make-A-Wish Foundation of America was founded in 1980 in Phoenix, Ariz., after a small group of people helped an ill little boy achieve his wish of being a state trooper for a day.

Since the foundation's inception nearly 29 years ago, more than 7,800 wishes have been granted to sick kids all across the country.