Andrew Lourake: Independence Day

Amidst the daylong Fourth of July festivities-a barbecue with friends, water sports, and fireworks-Lt. Col. (Ret.) Andrew Lourake experienced his own personal independence day when he realized the true versatility of the Ottobock X3 microprocessor-controlled knee (MPK) that he had been fit with the month before. He and his wife, Lisa, were celebrating at a friend’s lakefront home. An outdoor inflatable waterslide was set up for the kids to enjoy, but Lourake also climbed the ladder and slid down multiple times, then he kayaked around the lake, went tubing behind a friend’s ski boat, and eventually joined a group of kids who were jumping off a 15-foot-high dock into the water. And when he was done at the lake, all he had to do was walk into the shower and clean off.