00:01 TIMMY: I'm just like the other kids.
I'm just like them.
00:04 COMM: Linda Bannon and her son Timmy suffer
from a rare condition that left them born without arms.
00:10 LINDA: Shirt out or in?
TIMMY: Out.
00:13 COMM: But despite their circumstances, the
mother and son from Illinois, refuse to let their disabilities stop them from living their
life to the full.
00:38 COMM: Affecting only 1 in 100,000 people Linda
suffers from Holt Oram syndrome, which also causes heart problems.
But that didn't stop 35-year-old Linda living a normal life growing up.
00:52 LINDA: Being born without arms probably from
my perspective hasn't really affected my life that much because it never really occurred
to me growing up that I was that much different than anybody else.
01:07 COMM: In 2003, Linda met future husband Richard,
and when she fell pregnant, Doctors made the couple aware that any child could be born
with Linda's condition.
01:17 LINDA: Going through all the checkups that
parents go through when they're expecting a baby, we were given the option to terminate
the pregnancy but it was never even a consideration of ours, we want a family, we want to have
a baby.
01:31 COMM: Timmy suffered from severe heart problems
when he was born.
At just eight days old, he was rushed into surgery, and spent the first two months of
his life in intensive care.
01:43 COMM: But despite his difficult start in life
like his mother, Timmy would not allow his disability to get in the way.
01:49 TIMMY: Yeah, that was amazing!
01:52 COMM: The pair refuse to wear prosthetic limbs,
and insist their conditions have never held them back.
Whether it's cooking, getting dressed or playing video games.
02:02 TIMMY: Ah I love this one!
02:02 COMM: While Linda does everything she can
to maintain her independence, Richard is always ready to help out.
02:09 RICHARD: I do have to help in the bathroom,
other than that the other stuff that I help with, she can do herself but me feeling like
I'm supposed to be helping her, I do them for her ever though I don't necessarily need
to.
02:29 COMM: At school Timmy is treated like any
other student.
02:32 TIMMY: I'm just like the other kids.
I'm just like them.
And I’ll be just like them every time of my life.
02:39 PRINCIPAL: Timmy’s personality is such that
he gets along with all of his classmates, they accept him for who he is, they play along
with each other, I think the kids don’t even recognise that Timmy has some special
needs.
02:53 COMM: And when school's over, Timmy and Linda
are often found at the local pool.
02:59 TIMMY: I keep a float on by like using my
butt a little bit and I go under by on my back or on my front.
03:12 COMM: Along with managing Timmy's busy sports
schedule, and working as a Kindergarten teacher, Linda is also hoping to help other people
with the same condition.
03:21 LINDA: I've been starting taking classes in
business management with the hope of starting a non-profit organisation to help families
of children that are like myself and my son.
03:36 COMM: Linda knows that Timmy will face a difficult
future.
But is hopeful he will learn to live with his condition and have a happy life.
Just like her.
03:45 LINDA: My biggest concern for him is just
what will happen if he does not find that companionship, because with my husband I have
that person that when my parents have gone from this Earth, I have a person that will
look after me and help me and do things for me that my parents used to do.
We really hope that he'll find someone, we'll have to wait and