A young sports fan with only one functioning eye has received a custom gold prosthetic inspired by his favourite team.
Logan was just six months old when he was diagnosed with unilateral retinoblastoma, a type of eye cancer that meant his left eye had to be surgically removed.
His mum, Taline, first noticed that something was amiss when she took a picture of her child and saw an unusual white reflection in his left eye.
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Logan, now eight, receives a new prosthetic eye every two years and was due for a replacement at the end of September.
This time, the child asked his mum for a “personalised” prosthetic inspired by his baseball obsession.
“Logan had wanted a fun, personalised prosthetic eye for a while,” Taline told Need To Know.
“We agreed that once he became more comfortable with taking it in and out himself, we’d create something special, both to celebrate how far he’s come, and to help him continue to embrace his visible difference with confidence.
“When I asked what he wanted, he immediately said, ‘Something to do with baseball’.
“He’s been playing baseball for a year with our local team and absolutely loves the sport.”
Logan’s new eye pays homage to his favourite team, the Toronto Blue Jays.
The prosthetic has a realistic-looking baseball for the actual eye portion, and the team’s logo at the top to aid with orientation.
The Toronto-based superfan also asked for the iris of the eye to be gold, because it reminded him of the time the ‘cat’s eye’ glow was discovered when he was younger, which led to his life being saved.
Taline said: “ This all happened during the playoffs, just as the Blue Jays advanced to the ALCS [The American League Championship Series].
“It made the moment even more exciting and meaningful.”
Logan was absolutely thrilled when he received the eye.
She sid: “He said it was exactly what he imagined.
“He couldn’t wait to show his friends at school and decided it would be his ‘special occasion’ eye, he wears it to baseball games and big events.
“He calls it his ‘lucky eye’.”
The response to Logan’s story and his custom prosthetic was met with an outpouring of support from both his local community but also Blue Jays fans.
The Jays Care Foundation, a program set up by the Toronto Blue Jays to help children and youth facing barriers such as disability and poverty, invited Logan and his sisters to watch Game 6 of the ALCS.
A generous donor also gifted two tickets for Logan to see Game 7.
Taline added: “Logan was absolutely over the moon.
“The experience made him feel seen, celebrated and truly special.
“It meant so much to all of us.”
