San Antonio Woman Honored As 'CNN Hero' (Video)

SAN ANTONIO, TX — A San Antonio woman was among those honored for altruism during the "CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute" telecast Sunday, recognized for her work offering assistance to people with prosthetic limbs.

Mona Patel runs the nonprofit San Antonio Amputee Foundation aimed at helping amputees rebuild their lives. The organization offers peer support, education and recreation, as well as financial assistance for prosthetic limbs.

Patel's life work was born of her own personal ordeal. When Patel was a 17-year-old college student, she was hit by a drunken driver as she walked to class. The incident resulted in her leg being smashed, and she later underwent surgeries and amputation.

"When somebody becomes an amputee, maneuvering through the system is sometimes just scary," Patel told CNN. "I think the big catalyst of me doing what I do to help the amputee community is because I lived it."

With the same determination that would later prompt her creation of the San Antonio Amputee Foundation, Patel went on to earn a bachelor's and two master's degrees before becoming a social worker.

Yet along the way, Patel struggled not only physically given her disability but in finding a support network with other amputees. Amid her own continuing medical treatment, she vowed to launch such a support group as soon as she regained her full strength, she told the news network.

"I vowed that once I got back on my feet, I would start one," she told CNN.

Because of her efforts, 30 to 60 amputees get together each month to share stories and testimonies showcasing their strength and resilience, CNN reported. Patel estimates more than 1,100 amputees have attended the meetings, the network noted.

The nonprofit doesn't stop at merely providing space for commiseration, however. Patel also leads health/fitness programs but sponsors amputees to participate in tennis tournaments and endurance climbs. Led by Patel in 2015, a group of amputees climbed to the peak of Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, CNN reported.

During the "CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute" broadcast, a short film was presented showing Patel interacting with one of her nonprofit's beneficiaries. Bennelina, a young amputee from San Antonio, told her own story of dealing with suddenly becoming an amputee when the pain she had been experiencing in her leg when she was just seven years old was found to be attributable to cancer.

"So we got some tests done — we got a lot of tests done — and they said I needed surgery," Bennelina says in the film. The doctors told her she would need to have her foot amputated, she recalled, "and I started crying a lot. I felt said."

Bennelina enjoyed cheering during her school's athletic competitions — something she began doing at just three years old — and had to face the fact she would no longer be able to do that. This harsh reality made her sadder still.

But then she met Patel the day before her surgery, and the meeting would help change the young amputee's outlook. Which is not to say Bennelina wasn't frightened, as Patel recalled.

"Bennelina was very reluctant, because she was scared," Patel said. "And that little girl asked me every appropriate question. So sweet."

Bennelina looked at Patel's own prosthetic — a metallic, almost futuristic-looking implement — and asked if her own would have to look like that, or if she could choose a more realistic version. "And I said that's completely up to you," Patel said.

The young girl asked if Patel chose to wear a shiny prosthetic to let others know it's okay to wear a prosthetic, "And I looked at her and said you are absolutely right. So she texted me a couple hours later and she said 'Miss Mona, I decided I want to look sparkly and beautiful just like yours."

The two now call each other Sparkle Twins.

And while still in crutches learning to walk with her prosthetic, Bennelina looks forward to becoming a cheerleader again soon. "She has such a good attitude, and she climbs mountains with one leg," Bennelina said with palpable admiration of the mentor she calls Miss Mona. "She is like a superhero."

To read more about Patel's work, click here. An orange button at the bottom of the page also enables people to donate to her nonprofit. To get involved, visit the San Antonio Amputee Foundation website to see how you can help.

As one of the ten "CNN Heroes" showcased during Sunday's broadcast, San Antonio Amputee Foundation was awarded $10,000 to advance its work in the community.

>>> Photo by Hunter Johnson on Unsplash