Patch Whiz Kid of the Week: Liam Fitzgerald

Whiz Kid: Liam Fitzgerald, 5

Whiz Kid's School: Preschool,

Whiz Kid's Accomplishment:  Fitzgerald, who was born with Down Syndrome and diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia last year, has touched many lives in his young life and has taught many lessons to those who have had the pleasure of meeting him.

Whiz Kid's Key to Awesomeness: Fitzgerald’s parents, Christine and Bill, agree that Liam "wins your heart the moment you meet him and watching what he has endured has made the family stronger across the board."

Liam is currently undergoing maintenance treatments for the Leukemia and will for a total of three and a half years. Christine noted that he is "reacting incredibly well to the treatment." It is still important for him to stay germ free due to low blood counts and high risk for infection.

"He may be small for his age, but he is a charmer. He draws people in who want to know him," said Christine. "His doctors and nurses at UMASS absolutely adore him. When he comes in to be admitted for procedures, the team of residents on the floor actually fight over which group gets his room."

Liam’s preschool teacher, Colleen Bercume, feels honored to be a part of Liam's life. "He brings such joy to the preschool and the whole Zeh School. Seeing him continue to grow and learn and working with students like him make my job rewarding. His smile and positive demeanor are infectious. He has a wonderful family who are supportive and help make Liam who he is."

Liam is currently working on muscle strengthening and his speech, using speech gestures and sign language to communicate. Per Christine, he can count pretty well and knows some of his letters.

The family has a lot of faith in God, and Christine commented that Liam knows to genuflect to the tabernacle in church, knows the Hail Mary, most of the Our Father, a few other prayers and also how to make the sign of the cross.

His three older brothers (Nick, 14; Andrew, 18; and TJ, 20) have influenced his obsession with sports, especially if it has anything to do with a ball. Liam also enjoys music, dancing, and playing air hockey (in which he loves to yell out SCORE followed by the sound of the fog horn from the Bruins).

Cold shrimp cocktail (no sauce), pizza, salad, chocolate milk and Cheez-Its are among his favorite foods.

Despite all of Liam’s challenges, he is quite the regular little boy too. Christine admitted that "if he doesn’t like what’s for dinner – he pretends to pick up a phone and call the pizza guy and order a pizza for delivery or as he says 'Hello, Man, Mah (which is how he says Pizza), home, now, OK, bye!'" He also tries to extend his bedtime all the time.

"I can’t tell you what wonderful people we have met and the broader world we have been able to learn about that we may have closed our eyes to if not for this little boy," commented Christine.

She continued, "We would have never learned what unconditional love is really about–because children with special needs show it every day in everything they do."

"We have a lot to learn from children with special needs–it is just not always easy to see until you let yourself into their world and welcome them into ours," said Christine. "Liam is an inspiration. In his 5 years, he has faced more change and challenges than some of us face in many years of living. He is always happy and teaching us every day about what is important."