September 2022 Special Needs Living Akron/Canton

Youth Spotlight

There’s Always a SILVER LINING Owen Culp Proves It Daily!

Written by Melissa Klatt Photos by Julian Curet

Melissa Klatt

Julian Curet

Radiating Strength from Birth Owen was born twelve weeks early, weighing only 2 pounds. He pushed through three and a half months of care at Akron Children’s Hospital in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) before he was strong enough to come home. While in the hospital, he experienced many challenges, including developing hydrocephalus, a grade 4 hemorrhage in his brain, and hemiplegic spastic cerebral palsy due to a brain bleed while in the NICU.

He was officially diagnosed with cerebral palsy at age 1 and a half and has had over 20 operations for various issues that have come up. Last summer, when Owen was 16, he was diagnosed with Tourette’s syndrome, which brought to light a lot of the symptoms he’d been going through! For mom, Jill Culp, the puzzle started to come together. He’d been experiencing symptoms of anxiety and OCD that come along with Tourette’s.

Exploring His Community While Overcoming Fears Since a young age, Owen has been an integral part of his community and enjoys exploring it! While in elementary school, he was featured in the local newspaper for his dedication to the American Heart Association Jump Rope for Heart fundraiser. Also, the orthopedics department at Akron Children’s chose Owen to participate in a meet and greet with the Thunderbirds at the local air show. And finally, he was also selected by Dr. Kartina Lindsay in the neurodevelopmental center to participate in a horse riding experience at Victory Gallup in Bath Township, Ohio, later featured on social media!

Outside of those extracurriculars, Owen also shares a love of sports, playing Top Soccer in Trumbull County since age 4.

“Top Soccer is a league for people with disabilities and has been amazing in helping Owen learn about teamwork and help with his social skills,” says mom, Jill. “He also just started playing baseball this year in the Trumbull County Adaptive Baseball League, and he absolutely loves it. I’m just sad that he didn’t start playing sooner!”

Owen is hard working on and off the field, also taking on summer work through the Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities program. He’s worked positions where he’s stocked shelves, priced merchandise, and gathered carts. Starting on July 18, you can find him working a new opportunity at an eatery called Beautiful Whirl’d in Warren!

There’s Always a Silver Lining While Owen overcomes challenges every day, his mom, Jill, is the one cheering right behind him! She gives us some insight into what’s kept her going through life’s challenges as his mother:

Never stop being your child’s advocate! Brag about your child and make sure that the world knows just how awesome your child is. There may be times when it is hard to find the silver lining in things but keep on pushing through. I’ve had people tell me that they don’t know how I’ve done it raising Owen and all that he’s been through, but I just say that this is all I’ve known as a parent. I just do what I need to do to make sure that he is taken care of! If your child is able to play a sport or get involved in a group, push them to get active!