The Ryan White Story

The following was written by a friend.

You see the picture of one of the greatest people to grace this earth, in my opinion. His name is Ryan White and he died with AIDS. His story follows.

On December 6, 1971, Ryan Wayne White was born. Three days later, doctors told his parents that he was a hemopheliac. That means his blood does not clot the way it is suppose to. Luckily, there was a new product out that contained the clotting agents found in blood. This product was called Factor VIII, and was made from blood. Ryan grew up having many hemorages, or bleeds, and would get IV's of Factor VIII twice a week.

While he was battling pneumonia, he had to have surgery on December 17, 1984, to have two inches of his left lung removed. Two hours after the surgery, doctors told his mother that he had contracted AIDS. He was given 6 months to live. But he was a fighter.

He was determined to continue at his school and live life normally. But in 1985, not many people knew the truth about AIDS. Not very much was known about AIDS. Ryan faced a lot of discrimination, mostly based on the unknown. His school tried to keep him from attending and the town in which he lived was not very supportive, to say the least.

After legal battles, Ryan and his mother settled with the school to have separate restrooms and disposable silverware from the cafeteria. But that didn't stop much. Students vandalized his locker with the word "FAG" and restaurants threw his dishes away after he left. A bullet was even fired into his home.

After that, he and his family moved to Cicero, Indiana, and were welcomed. People had been educated and Ryan was happy again. He had his learner's permit. He had friends, his family, and he was turning an incurable disease into a way to edcuate America. There was a movie made about him, titled "The Ryan White Story," that aired on ABC. Ryan got to be an actor as he played his friend Chad.

Ryan White was making a difference. But on April 8, 1990, the world lost a wonderful person. He knew he was famous, took that, and turned it into something that everyone could learn from. He knew his purpose in life.

For facts on Ryan, click here.

Ryan spoke before the President's Commission. click here to read his testimony.

Ryan has impacted me...even though I didn't know him personally. Read my personal message.