COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Dean Douglas' parents say while he may not look like an average
superhero out of a comic book, the battles he fights make him just as brave as one.
"There's lots of kids at school in different grades who don't necessarily know his name, but they know him as Captain America," said Dean's mom Mandy Douglas. "Dean has really latched onto the superhero world, and so Captain America is definitely his go-to".
Dean and his twin brother Luke were born 4 and a half months early, according to their parents. They say this left the two boys in the NICU for more than 6 months and affected them both. Luke has a paralyzed vocal chord while his brother Dean was diagnosed with cerebral palsy and ocular nerve atrophy. Still, that hasn't stopped Dean and Luke from becoming inseparable.
"I just like spending time with him, he's really sweet to me and I'm really sweet to him," said Luke.
Their father Matthew joined his wife Mandy to show me around the boys' bedroom, covered in Star Wars memorabilia and Captain America Funko Pop dolls.
Matthew says it's been some time since the family was able to go out for a bike ride or hike together.
"So, trails with the pea gravel and those things, if there's any moisture or divots in them, they're bumpy and it's not just feasible to get a wheelchair on them," said Mandy.
Dean has had outdoor accessible bikes and wheelchairs in the past, but as he's gotten older he's outgrown them.
"It's a good problem to have," said Matthew. "We're happy he's gaining weight and getting taller".
"This bike that we're specifically looking into allows us to get out on the bike rides with the boys again, be a family and get out there, he gets to just be a kid," said Mandy.
"It makes it so instead of telling Dean for another Summer 'I'm sorry we can't do it because your wheelchair can't do that', we can tell him we can do it, and you're no longer limited because of your disability. And that's huge for us".
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