Growing up near the beach, Todd Lemay spent years watching others enjoy walking on the beach, feeling the sand between their toes and the occasional spray of saltwater on their ankles.
An experience many took for granted was what Lemay dreamed of. Lemay has osteogenesis imperfecta, a disease that yields bones fragile and easily broken. Lemay has broken 75 bones. He has spent nearly all of his 47 years relying on a wheelchair to get around.
This prevented Lemay from going off any paved road. If he did, the ride wasn’t easy or comfortable.
“I wanted to feel the water hit my legs and feet. I wanted to go on the sand,” said Lemay, who grew up in Maine, about 20 minutes from the shore. “But I could only enjoy it from the parking lot.”
