SENATE SUBCOMMITTEE HEARING Feb. 27th
BENJAMIN CUMBO - BIOGRAPHY
Benjamin Cumbo |
02/23/01
Benjamin Cumbo, 13, is a former two-term National Goodwill Ambassador for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. During 1996 and 1997, he and his family toured the country garnering support for MDA, and were profiled and appeared live on the MDA Labor Day Telethon. Benjamin has Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
He lives with his parents, Benjamin and Deborah, and sister Tyler, 11, in Upper Marlboro, Md. Ben Sr. is with the National Imaging and Mapping Agency of the Department of Defense, and Debi is advertising director for the National School Boards Association. An older sister, Erin, 21, has been Benjamin's counselor at MDA summer camp.
Benjamin's accomplishments range from earning an orange belt in karate to designing adapted monkey bars for children with disabilities. Currently he enjoys swimming and drawing. Of all his interests, though, one stands out clearly.
"His big thing is military aviation," says Mrs. Cumbo. His favorite aircraft is the Navy's F-18 Hornet, a highly maneuverable fighter jet. Other current interests include football, the Internet and flight-simulation programs.
Although Benjamin has started to tire more easily as a result of his muscular dystrophy, he's still ambulatory. He
sometimes uses a manual wheelchair for distances and when changing classes at middle school. To get to school, Ben rides an adapted bus that accommodates his chair.
Ben has taken prednisone since age 5 and a "vitamin cocktail" in the past year or so to help slow the progression of Duchenne, one of nine forms of muscular dystrophy in MDA's program. |
