HARLINGEN — Jesus Adame always has a smile on his face despite his daily battle with cerebral palsy.

Jesus, 6, first child of Jesus and Viridiana Adame, was born prematurely when his mother was six and a half months into her pregnancy.

He weighed just 3 1/2 pounds and measured about 15 inches at birth, Viridiana Adame said.

But Jesus’ cerebral palsy condition was not discovered right away. It took almost a year for doctors to detect that there was something wrong.

Viridiana Adame said that when Jesus was about 5 months old, she and her husband noticed that he was smaller than what they thought he should be and was having hearing problems.

“We thought it was just because he had been born prematurely,” Viridiana Adame said in Spanish.

But the couple grew more concerned when at 8 months old Jesus seemed to be slower than other children his age, his mother said.

She said she and her husband started looking for answers but the doctors they consulted in Matamoros gave them different opinions.

One doctor told her that Jesus had lacked oxygen during birth, another said his brain had not developed properly because of brain fluid and one said the only problem was that Jesus had been premature.

Then one doctor gave Jesus a more in-depth evaluation and gave the Adames the diagnosis of cerebral palsy.

“We started crying,” Viridiana Adame said with tears rolling down her face. “We both started crying. He was our first-born child.”

Viridiana Adame said she and her husband decided to move from Matamoros to Harlingen to have access to better medical care for their son.

Jesus Adame had already been working in Harlingen doing woodcraft and had been commuting to Matamoros every day.

The family did not receive Medicaid until earlier this year, Viridiana Adame said. Easter Seals had been helping the family pay for Jesus’ health care and medical needs, or the couple paid out of their own pocket.

Jesus can’t talk, walk or sit up on his own, but he can hear and understand, Viridiana Adame said.

And despite all he’s been through in his young life, his mother said, Jesus is a happy person.

“He’s always smiling,” she said. “He can be feeling sick with fever but he’s always smiling. He’s very curious and observant.”

Jesus is a special education student at Sam Houston Elementary and he hates to miss school, she said.

“He hears when the school bus is here and he yells out of happiness,” she said. “He loves to see school buses.”

The family has learned to control their emotions in order to support Jesus and help him be happy.

“We see him as normal,” Viridiana Adame said. “I feel sometimes (Jesus) gets frustrated because he wants to do things but the more we show him we feel bad for him, the more he’ll feel he can’t do it.”

“He’s something joyful for us, not a punishment,” she added.

When it comes to the family’s financial needs, Viridiana Adame said whether they are doing good or bad, they always find a way to pay what needs to be paid.

Jesus Adame works a full-time job but Viridiana Adame devotes her time to Jesus.

“If I go to work, no one will give (Jesus) attention like I do,” she said. “I understand him already.”

Medicaid has been a big help and the Children with Special Health Care Needs Service Program of the Texas Department of State Health Services helped the Adames build a wheelchair ramp for the front of the house.

Viridiana Adame is still hoping to be able to get a ramp in the back of the house, where they move Jesus from his wheelchair to their vehicle.

“Jesus is just 33 pounds,” she said. “The wheelchair is the heavy part.”

Jesus brings joy and cheer to the family, she said, but soon there will be more cheer in the family.

Viridiana Adame is about 7 months pregnant and said she feels positive about her pregnancy.

“I am going to make it to the 9 months,” she said smiling.

Jesus has a long road ahead with several surgeries he’ll need to improve the quality of his life as he gets older, Viridiana Adame said, but added that Jesus is a strong boy.

“I get strength from him,” she said. “He’s happy so why should I not be happy. We have no reason to be sad if he’s not.”

“He’s all love with everyone,” Viridiana Adame said. “He always gives you a smile.”

WHAT IS OPERATION NOEL?

Operation Noel is the Valley Morning Star’s annual drive to raise money and gifts for families with special needs in the Rio Grande Valley.

The fifth of a series of stories that profile needy families appears today. A coupon for readers to use to send in donations will accompany each article.

Operation Noel is a volunteer effort by the Star and there are no administrative costs, Editor Paul Binz said. All donations go directly to help the Operation Noel families.

The families profiled were referred to the newspaper by various agencies involved with helping less fortunate Valley residents.

Donations of money, toys, non-perishable foods, blankets, etc., can be mailed to the Valley Morning Star at 1310 S. Commerce, Harlingen TX 78550, or dropped at the newspaper office.