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SALT LAKE CITY — Skyler Beckstead loves music. The 31-year-old with cerebral palsy dances in his wheelchair anytime he hears a beat he likes.
When Skyler was just a baby, his father, Steve Beckstead, was working at a radio station in Heber. The radio station sponsored a dance at the community center, and at 6-weeks-old, Skyler was exposed to rock music for the first time.
Now, Skyler always has a CD playing, and he's considered the number one fan of Steve's classic rock band, Flashbacc. When the family can get him to the concerts or he can watch practice, Skyler rocks back and forth, dancing to the music.
"He's the best fan you'll ever have. He'll be there waving and cheering you on," Steve said.
And the band loves Skyler. A few weeks ago at practice, his bandmate turned to Steve and said "Skyler needs a new van. And we want to do a fundraiser. What do you think?"
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"We thought we would do this to kind of help lighten the load," said bandmate Randy Reid. They have known each other since 2001, when Randy joined the Salt Lake Symphonic Choir, and Steve joined the band a little more than five years ago. "Steve will do anything for anyone at the drop of a hat."
The 18-year-old wheelchair-accessible van with engine problems makes it difficult for the family to travel outside of the Wasatch Front, has a leak in the air conditioning, and a few years ago, somebody hit its side while it was parked, breaking all the fiberglass. They didn't leave a note and the family hasn't been able to repair it.
To replace it, the band planned a dinner, concert, and silent auction fundraiser* for June 22. They hope to raise $10,000 to go toward a new van. The base price for a used van equipped for Skyler's needs is about $20,000.
"Randy's one who is very sensitive to other people's needs, probably due to some of the rough times he's had in his own life, and he just really connected with my son," Steve said. "It was pretty emotional for me that they would think enough of Skyler that they would do that for him."
Skyler was a little more than a year old when he was diagnosed with spastic quadriplegia, a form of cerebral palsy. Later, he developed epilepsy as well. Doctors told Steve and Margene Beckstead that they should institutionalize their son and forget about him. The couple refused to do that to their first son, and took on the challenge of caring for him themselves.
Since 1995, Steve has been a stay-at-home father while Margene works full time. With the help of Medicaid and Social Security, they pay for the equipment and personnel to care for him at home.
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"We have had a lot of opportunities through the years for him to have as normal a life as can be," Steve said.
Skyler currently attends a day program that "gives him kind of a life of his own," his father said, but he loves his family. His younger brother has two children who adore playing with Skyler in his limited way. And every night, Steve helps Skyler go to bed.
"He's really a daddy's boy. He has to have me put him to sleep at night, take his glasses off and turn on the music — he has to have a CD playing, usually ‘Little Mermaid,' " Steve said.
Though Skyler loves and depends most on his father, Steve said he is an immediate friend to everyone.
"He draws people in as they get around him because he's so happy and so social," Steve said. "He knows people. He has a really good sense of people."
Skyler doesn't talk, but he communicates in every other way, like a handshake or his excited rocking.
"He's really the light of our lives. For someone in the circumstance he has to deal with, he really has adapted well," his father said.
In turn, Steve said, people in the community look out for Skyler and his family. People have already stepped forward with donations for the fundraiser.
"We're grateful for good friend and good people. It seems like whenever Skyler has a need, someone steps up, usually from the most unexpected places, to help him keep a good quality of life. That's always been our goal: to keep him with those who he is familiar and comfortable, and the people he loves," Steve said. "We're grateful that others are helping and looking out for him."
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