Gary Leither: Standing on Two Feet

At Great Steps, we pride ourselves in helping others through their difficult times by helping them receive the necessary assistance to get back on their feet and continue to enjoy their everyday life and that is no different with one of our great patients, Gary Leither.

Gary Leither, 60 years old, from Cold Spring, Minnesota discovered he had type 2 Diabetes back in 1994 after experiencing sores on his feet. Gary was referred to Great Steps where we proceeded to help him out with the correct orthotics to make him feel more comfortable. Unfortunately for Gary, he lost his toes due to his struggle with diabetes later in 2005 and ultimately in January of 2014, after constant sores on his left foot, he had below the knee amputation on his left leg.

Once again, that is where we, at Great Steps, stepped in to help Gary out with the necessary prosthesis and in March we fitted him for his first prosthetic. Gary was very eager to get back on his feet, that he only needed 2 rehab sessions before he was comfortably walking on his own. According to Gary, “the fit was fantastic,” and he was relieved to be done with the countless surgeries and the need to walk around wearing a boot, which is another reason why the transition period was very smooth for Gary, stating that he “accepted the change real well.”

While providing him with the necessary prosthetic, Great Steps continues to assist him with the necessary orthotics for his right foot that currently has Charcot Foot to help improve his posture and assist in walking.

One of the main factors for his smooth transition into accepting that he would need a prosthetic was when he met and talked to the staff here at Great Steps and realized that many of them were also living their lives with prosthetics. Gary was very surprised by the fact that some of the staff members he spoke to had prosthetics and he didn't realize it for quite some time.

After many years of working and even a brief period of owning and managing his own floral shop with his wife, Gary is enjoying the retired life with his wife of 29 years, Ione, whom is also retired after teaching for 25 years, and his three kids (two daughters and son). Gary enjoys every moment of his life and likes to keep himself busy by reading, fishing, golfing and watching the Minnesota Twins. He also volunteers for his church and at the St. Cloud Hospital 2-3 times a week. After multiple years of experiencing sores and enduring surgeries, Gary is just excited to finally be on his feet and wants to enjoy every moment by keeping himself busy.

He thanks Great Steps for providing him with the necessary orthotics and prosthetics to continue living the life he enjoys with his family and friends stating, “Great Steps is a very good company, with wonderful staff.”