When Carter re-entered the doors at Shriners Children’s St. Louis, he was no longer a little boy receiving pediatric orthopedic care. Now in his 30s, the husband, father and professional adaptive athlete returned “home” to thank his doctor.
The occasion? A reunion with his physician, Perry Schoenecker, M.D., the man who helped guide Carter and his family through many of their most challenging medical decisions.
Carter’s care at Shriners Children’s began when he was a toddler. Born with a rare and complex condition called proximal femoral focal deficiency, Carter’s right leg was much shorter than his left. His parents turned to Shriners Children’s for specialized orthopedic care.
Dr. Schoenecker worked closely with Carter’s family to develop a personalized treatment plan. For the first few years of Carter’s life, he wore a brace to make up for the length difference. However, the disparity grew too extensive. Carter’s family faced a pivotal decision: attempt to lengthen the leg, or amputate his foot and add a prosthetic.
Conversations with other Shriners Children’s families and thoughtful guidance from Dr. Schoenecker gave them the peace of mind to choose what was best for Carter’s long-term mobility. In his case, this meant an amputation at age 4.
A star athlete is born
As Carter grew, he excelled in sports. Even with a prosthetic, he became one of the best athletes in his high school. When traditional sports eventually grew more challenging, a chance encounter led him to try wheelchair basketball, an adaptive sport that changed his life.
Carter earned a full-ride scholarship to play wheelchair basketball at the University of Missouri. He later joined Team USA, traveling the world and helping his team secure the gold medal in the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation men’s tournament in Bogotá in 2013. However, his athletic evolution didn’t stop there.
After a hiatus from sports, Carter discovered adaptive golf, a sport he now plays competitively, often with his wife, Laura, by his side as caddy. Together, they’re raising two children and embracing a life full of drive, in every sense of the word.
Looking back with gratitude
Even now, Carter speaks fondly of his time at Shriners Children’s. “I had many traumatizing moments at that hospital, and for me to look back with glowing, happy memories – that is only because of the teams that were there, and are still there today,” Carter said.
For this former patient, Shriners Children’s wasn’t just a hospital. It was where his story began, and where he learned that nothing, not even a prosthetic leg, could limit his potential.
As Carter embraced Dr. Schoenecker, he found himself fighting back tears. Not of sadness, but with overwhelming gratitude for the doctor who changed his life. Saying thank you was only part of his return. The rest was a quiet promise to keep going, and to help light the way for the next kid just like him.
