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Four-year-old Kursat Kilicoglu, who has difficulty walking, can now practice more comfortably in his Kastamonu village after local authorities paved the road.
His family, living in Doguorcunler village, took Kursat to physical therapy and pool sessions to improve his walking and posture. Following pool exercises, the boy slowly started to walk.
Kursat needs to walk four hours a day in special shoes for his development, but the stone and dirt road disrupted his exercises. Village head Unal Kilicoglu noticed that Kursat often fell and refused to walk, so he reported the situation to the authorities.
Through the efforts of the district governor's office, the governor's office, and the Special Provincial Administration, the village roads were paved with asphalt.
Kilicoglu's mother, Nurten Kilicoglu, said that they live in the Bayramoglu neighborhood of Doguorcunler village. Her son has a walking and posture disorder as well as difficulty speaking. She explained that although he has turned four, there was a delay in his walking and speaking. "We are getting physical therapy to help his health improve," she said, adding that she also does exercises at home to support the treatment.
Kilicoglu said they had been applying therapy in the pool so he could walk, and that he started walking in the pool after the treatment process. "He needed to walk four hours a day in special shoes, but he couldn't walk in the village because the village road was stony and sandy," she said.
She added that a friend gave them a baby stroller, which they took apart and turned into a walker. "He walked with the walker, more or less, but he couldn't do it on his own," she said.
Kilicoglu said her child's walking improved over time. When they went to the city for the hospital, her son had started walking on his own, although with difficulty. He walks in the city, she said, but he couldn't walk in the village for fear of falling because of the condition of the roads.
One day at the hospital, she filmed him walking and shared it on social media. Village head Unal Kilicoglu called and asked why the child could walk there but not in the village.
"I said the village roads are stony and muddy, so he falls and can't walk because he is afraid," Kilicoglu recalled. The village head then spoke with the officials and had them pave the road.
Saying she is very happy, Kilicoglu said Kursat has walked without stopping since the asphalt was laid. "He is very happy because he can walk on his own. His self-confidence has returned, and his happiness is visible on his face," she said.
She noted that it is free in the village, with nobody around and only a limited number of cars passing, so he can walk on his own. "This is a great joy for me. For a mother, seeing her child walk is priceless. I thank everyone who contributed very much," she said.
Doguorcunler village head said he called the family and asked for the videos after seeing on social media that Kursat was walking on asphalt. He passed the matter on to Provincial General Assembly member Hayrettin Melezoglu, and together they evaluated it and informed the district governor.
"Thank God, asphalt was laid in our village. He walks very well and is happy. I am very glad," the village head said. "May God be pleased with our governor, our Special Provincial Administration, and our district governor, who gave us this opportunity."
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