Wendall Waters
Wicked Local North, Danvers, Mass.
BOXFORD, Mass. — Anthony Micalizzi, Jr. needs a wheelchair van. So, the Boxford Firefighter’s Relief Association hosted a one-pitch softball tournament to help the 13-year-old’s family raise the funds to purchase one.
Anthony has a neuromuscular condition that causes spastic quadriplegia.
“What spastic quadriplegia means is that he has trouble controlling his muscles like a normally functioning person would do,” says his sister Gianna.
A van will help Anthony get to and from school, visit with friends, and do all the things teens like to do.
The tourney was held Saturday, Sept. 11, at the Johnson field near the DPW in Boxford, and the event included food and raffles.
“It was super, super successful,” Gianna says.
It’s hard to miss the fact that in all the photos Gianna submitted for this story, Anthony is smiling.
“That’s what he’s famous for,” she says. “Everybody knows him for his smile.”
Anthony attended the Spofford Pond School in Boxford, and now he goes to a school that specializes in helping students with disabilities.
“Anthony is pretty much the happiest kid you could ever meet,” Gianna says. “He really just has a huge impact on everyone who knows him.”
Gianna is a freshman at Essex Tech. She says she’s still exploring the shops to decide on a major, but her first choice right now is health assisting, something she has first-hand experience with from helping Anthony.
Elisabeth Camerlin, who has served as Anthony’s personal care attendant on and off over the last few years, set up GoFundMe: Help Anthony Get a Wheelchair Van.
Also, Anthony’s parents, Boxford Firefighter Anthony Micalizzi and wife Kristin, founded a non-profit called Team Anthony to help other children with disabilities and their families get services, information and equipment. Their son was the inspiration for it, and he is the organization’s CEO, as in Cake Eating Officer. Visit their website to learn more and to find out how you can contribute.
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(c)2021 Wicked Local North, Danvers, Mass.