An 18-year-old with a prosthetic leg is donating more than 400 Barbies that also have prostheses to the Springfield hospital where she’s received treatment, saying they’ll help other patients’ self-image.
Chloe Newman was born with a missing limb and has has been receiving prosthetic services, including multiple fittings, at Shriners Hospital in Springfield for her entire life. When she found out Mattel has a line of Barbie dolls with prosthetic legs, they posted on Facebook asking for donations to the hospital.
The post went viral and Chloe was able to donate more than 400 dolls. She said they’ll give comfort to girls who need it.
“I think they would feel better about themselves,” Chloe said. “That’s what I hope at least, that they would see wow they are making a Barbie like me so why should I be ashamed of myself if there’s now toys like me.”
Dr. Brock McConkey, who has provided Chloe’s prosthetic services for the majority of her life, made his own version of the doll for her years ago. Chloe said McConkey was one of the main reasons she wanted to donate the dolls, and McConkey said he was proud of her.
“It’s very rewarding to see them grow up and do certain things like this and she’s only going to continue to do things like this that better the community and the lives of people,” McConkey said.
The hospital will donate extra dolls to other Shriners locations across the country.
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