Ryan Fitzgerald was three months old when doctors told his family he had congenital fibrosarcoma. He had his left leg amputated before his first birthday. He has been moving forward ever since.
What Ryan Experienced
Ryan's first prosthetic came at age three: a rigid, painful device that made one thing clear early on: life as an amputee would demand constant perseverance. It didn't stop him. Ryan played varsity football for four years on one leg and helped lead his high school team to a state championship, earning the respect of his coaches, teammates, and his entire community.
Through bullying, identity struggles, and relentless insurance battles, he refused to be defined by what he had lost. More than 30 years of navigating the prosthetic care system firsthand gave Ryan something no policy brief can replicate: credibility earned through lived experience.
The Barrier He Hit
He knows the insurance denials. He knows the financial hardship. He knows what it costs in money, in time, and in dignity just to walk. The system is not designed to make this easy. It is designed to make it difficult, and Ryan hit every barrier it puts in front of amputees.
That experience is not incidental to the foundation's mission. It is the foundation's mission. No amputee should have to fight this alone, and no one is better positioned to say that than someone who spent three decades fighting it himself.
"Adversity can become purpose, and one person's story can help thousands walk again."
Ryan Fitzgerald, Founder & Executive DirectorWhy He Built This
The Ryan Fitzgerald Foundation exists because Ryan decided that no amputee should have to navigate this alone. He founded it to build what was missing after the surgery: another amputee who picks up the phone, counseling and therapy from people who actually understand limb loss, guidance through the financial wreckage the bills leave behind, and a way back out into the world with people who get it without being told.
He also co-founded AmpuHealth to pursue broader systemic solutions: prosthetic access, advocacy, and care models built for the people who need them most, not for the convenience of the system. Ryan speaks to schools, faith communities, policymakers, and national audiences with a single message: adversity can become purpose, and one person's story can help thousands walk again.
The Mission, In His Words
The Ryan Fitzgerald Foundation connects amputees with professionals who understand limb loss, with mentors who have lived it, and with each other, so that no amputee faces recovery alone.
What Comes Next
The foundation is early. The work is real. Ryan is finding the first mentors, amputees who have found their footing and will take a call from someone who has not, and the counselors, therapists, and financial planners who understand limb loss. Matching has not started yet, and getting there is the whole job right now. There is more to do than any one organization can accomplish alone.
Every person who reads this page is a potential part of the answer: donors, prosthetists, corporate partners, and amputees who need help. Ryan is not done, and neither is the story.