By Lorrie Flem
It was 1994. It started with a seemingly inconsequential symptom. Your legs feeling sluggish is just an indication that you are sitting too much, right? So he jumped to the obvious conclusion and decided to take up jogging. It was then that he knew something was obviously wrong. He could hardly move after jogging only ten minutes.
He had a spinal tap in early December and waited for the results. He and his wife, Tracy, had three older children, a 5-month-old baby, and were happily pregnant with their fifth (and sixth, although they didn’t know it yet!). They couldn’t help but remember back when nine years earlier he had been tested for multiple sclerosis. At that time his hands and feet were a little numb, but to their relief the doctors decided MS was not what he had. As the symptoms subsided they went on with their lives.
The doctor finally called, and the results of the spinal tap were conclusive: the 33-year-old soon-to-be father of six precious children had multiple sclerosis. He and his wife went away together for a couple of days to try to make sense of this. He had a debilitating disease about which they knew next to nothing. They were scared and felt alone. When asked about it she simply says, “We cried a lot.” As they walked around the little town they were staying in, there was a bittersweet moment amid the pain. They found the antique piano of her dreams, and she was able to take that lovely piece home.
Chris spent hours researching alternative treatments. From the very beginning, he has faithfully pursued a strict diet and supplementation regime. Often caring people ask Chris if he’s heard of some specific diet, herb, or treatment. Over the years he has tried them all. In fact, they credit these, along with prayer, for the remarkable reason that he is still able to walk at all.
In June of 1998, they were excited as they finally pulled into their garage from a trip, anxious to see their children. His mother, who had stayed with the children, met them at the door to warn them to stay out; Bethany had chicken pox. Since this is an autoimmune disease it can be particularly difficult for MS patients. They relaxed when a blood test showed an immunity to chicken pox, so he pitched in to help his busy wife with the extra work. When the rest of the children came down with it, he did too, and the results were horrific. He was completely paralyzed for three days. It was immediately apparent that as a result of the chicken pox the MS had settled in his hips. His gait was no longer smooth, and he never walked the same again.
By now you may have guessed that this is a true story about someone whose name you probably are familiar with: Chris Klicka, Senior Defense Attorney at HSLDA. His is one of the most beloved names in homeschooling today. That day in June, the chicken pox had started a chain of events that continued its devastating course. His MS is now Chronic Progressive Declining, which means that his fragile health is in a continual state of decline. The prognosis is total paralysis within four to eight years. At his point almost all of his body has been affected.
Chris and my husband Randy became fast friends three years ago. As soon as they met, they both felt as if they had known each other for a long time, and their friendship has been strengthened with many meetings and phone calls that have crossed the United States between our family in the Pacific Northwest and the Klicka family in Virginia. As a result of their friendship we were blessed to share our home with them for a few days last week and witnessed firsthand the amazingly positive effect water has on his strength and, therefore, on his outlook on life.
Chris now uses two canes to walk. Lifting each leg is a remarkable chore. One thing that helps his physical ability is swimming. During the summer he is able to use public and friends’ pools. In the winter, pools are closed, and with his increasing difficulty in walking and navigating stairs, this is no longer possible due to the time and energy expenditure required. Yet, Chris has a strong desire to continue swimming. We got to see firsthand how swimming helped and why he yearns to be able to swim on a daily basis.
It was incredible! Our 17-year-old son gave him a ride down to the lake in our little golf cart. Chris then laboriously worked his way onto the dock and then into the 63-degree water. He and a dozen children swam for about an hour as he enjoyed the buoyancy the water provided him. Afterwards he was ecstatic because he was able to walk up the hill doing heel/toe walking and doing it with more strength and less effort than I had seen him expend to simply sit down. How much we take our physical abilities for granted. He walked ten times around our patio and then around the house—a truly huge accomplishment!
The cold water contracts his muscles and makes him stronger. The water workout gives him the chance to move and exercise in a way that is simply impossible otherwise. Exercising in the water allows him to maintain, and over time would allow him to build, upper body strength since he does not have to battle gravity and can exercise without stress. This in turn has a tremendous effect on his outlook on life. He obviously looks and feels better after spending time in the water.
Chris has dedicated his life to the evangelical mission of making homeschooling possible for us. He could stay home and give up but he continues to fight for each step and to keep out of a wheelchair. Today we can come alongside their family with love and financial support to help keep him physically strong, just a little bit longer.
Ten years after the diagnosis, Tracy says, “We have persevered by God’s grace alone and the power of His Word! He is so trustworthy, but He knows how small our faith is at times, and how we often need fresh reminders of the fact that He has never, nor will He ever, forsake His children.”
For $22,000 they can purchase the Infinite Therapeutic Pool and have it installed next to his home office where he can easily use it. Due to the generous responses to readers of the TEACHer’s Manual ezine, $13,000 has been raised. Now, TOS readers have the opportunity to participate and share in the heavenly blessing while supporting, encouraging, thanking, and uplifting the Klicka family in their time of financial need. Here’s how:
1. Pray for their healing, strength, joy, and steadfastness in the face of trials.
2. Help financially by blessing them with a donation toward a Therapeutic Pool.
Send your check for whatever amount (nothing is too small) to:
Chris and Tracy Klicka
6779 Riley Road
Warrenton, VA 20187
A week after his invigorating swim Chris said something that still resonates in my ears: “I am hanging on to that picture of me walking after swimming. It’s what keeps me going.”
“As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.” Galatians 6:10
Homeschool Leaders Are Saying …
“For the past 17 years, I have witnessed the maturing and testing of one of my life’s heroes. Always the optimist, always focused on family, and always, always sharing his deep love for his Lord, Jesus Christ, to everyone he meets. I have marveled at Chris’s tenacious resolve even while his physical body weakened. His overriding willingness to lay down his life for us all has had a major impact on many homeschooling families. Chris Klicka is a living, breathing, sure-fire hero in my book. He is a mighty man of God and I consider it an honor to have him as my friend.” –Bob Farewell, Lifetime Books and Gifts
“When the history of the modern revival of the homeschooling movement is written, Chris Klicka will be at the top of the list. I think he’s had as much impact on the development and growth of home education as any other person in the homeschooling movement. He is a source of encouragement for all of us here at HSLDA as he struggles with health issues yet selflessly serves the members of HSLDA and the homeschooling movement at large.” –Mike Smith, President, HSLDA
“Few men have captured the hearts of homeschool families in America like Chris Klicka. His devotion to the cause of homeschool freedom is singular and tireless. Through ten thousand legal contacts and millions of miles of ministry, Chris Klicka personifies the indefatigable warrior for Christ who has fearlessly shed his own blood in one of the defining issues of this generation—the defense of the biblical family. I served with Chris for six years and consider it one of the great privileges afforded to my by God.” –Doug Phillips, President, Vision Forum
“America’s homeschooling families have been blessed by the life of Chris Klicka. He is a challenger, an encourager, and a servant, a man of God who demonstrates through his life how to persevere under trial and in spite of suffering. Chris urges us to trust God through our most difficult situations. He is more than a conqueror through Christ who strengthens him.” –David and Shirley Quine, Cornerstone Curriculum
“Chris has not only played a crucial role in the legal success of home education, he has done so while enduring enormous physical challenges. He has accomplished this through an unshakable faith in a gracious providence. This example of steadfastness and hope in the face of adversity is, perhaps, his most significant and enduring contribution to the Christian home education movement. I am proud and humbled to call Chris my friend.” –Philip Troutt, Executive Director, CHEA of California
Lorrie Flem has been honored to be the happy rib of Randy for 20 years. They make their home in Maple Valley, Washington until they reach the mansion Jesus is preparing for them. She considers it a privilege to be a stay-at-home homeschooling mom to their always precious and often precocious eight children.
Lorrie has always been prone to talk and as a result she has written a number of books, is the publisher of TEACH Magazine, a FREE bi-monthly ezine, and speaks nationally at conferences, retreats, and teas. Lorrie is known for her humorous and gentle words of encouragement to other keepers of the home. See her and get a sample of TEACH – The Magazine that Puts the Home in Homeschooling – For Mothers of Today with Yesterday’s Values, at www.TEACHmagazine.com.
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