Horribly burned and disfigured in a house fire in Milwaukee in June 1981, Robert has spent almost all of his young life fighting to live, to walk, to bend his body, to move his hands. Though he can now do those things, and much more, he still bears scars of the blaze that put deep second- and third-degree burns over more than 60% of his body, including his face, trunk and all his extremities. Doctors at first doubted that he would live. He lost most of his nose in the fire, and his reconstructed nose doesn't set exactly right yet. He lost his left ear, and the replacement surgery wont take place until later this year. He lost many fingers, and they are being replaced slowly, joint by joint. The skin over almost all of his body is either wrinkled or splotched, the result of debridement - removal of dead tissue - and skin grafts.
Photo measures 6 x 8.75 inches. Photo is dated 04-09-1986.
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