Rylie Dous

“For we are God’s handiwork created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God prepares in advance for us to do.” ~Ephesians 2:10
Eight-year-old Rylie Dous, a third grader at Benton Elementary School, wants to be a teacher when she grows up. She has an eye for fashion, loves horseback riding and Disney World, and thinks her little brother, Nathan, is “ok most of the time”. Rylie, in many ways, is like most girls her age, yet she far from anything ordinary. Rylie Dous comes with a force and a faith that is like no other. Rylie is challenged, to a degree, due to a congenital disorder of movement and muscle tone known as Cerebral Palsy. She uses a shiny blue walker with bright Aztec print details to help with mobility. Although Cerebral Palsy is a challenge she takes on daily, it does not slow her down in the least. Rylie is a perfect example of the words that she proudly shares with everyone she meets, “If you believe in God, all things are possible”.
In 2015 Rylie began noticing other children during her doctor’s visits that were not equipped with walkers and wheelchairs. This struck a chord in Rylie’s heart. At the time she did not understand why these other children with a disability did not have the medical equipment, like she did, to help with their mobility. Due to expenses, low insurance reimbursements and high deductibles, many families who care for children with disabilities cannot afford the equipment they need. Her realization that these kids did not have all of the equipment that she was blessed to have, bothered Rylie. She continued to pray for the children, as Rylie does, but this little warrior wanted to do more. Rylie came to her mom, Jessica, and told her that she wanted to start a foundation to help kids like herself. Jessica gave her the idea of raising funds to build a handicap accessible playground. Rylie responded with wisdom beyond her years, “Momma, if you could not walk and needed a wheelchair, would you rather someone build you a playground or buy you a wheelchair?”.
“Strong willed is an understatement for Rylie”, her mother will say. Rylie knew what she wanted to do, and there was not a person who could change her mind.
Rylie and her friends immediately began designing t-shirts for her new foundation, The CRD — No Limits Foundation. “CRD” standing for her initials, Caroline Rylie Dous. Jessica worried that just the funds from t-shirt sales would not be enough to help as much as Rylie had envisioned. Although the workload of putting together a 5-K would be tough, Jessica felt God’s calling to make it happen. They began planning a 5-k run in honor of Rylie’s determination to give back. The “No Limits-Just Faith” 5-k race in June 2016 was one of the most successful first annual 5-k runs in the area. With t-shirt sales, profits from the race and donations, The CRD Foundation has raised nearly twenty-thousand dollars to help kids like Rylie. The foundation has provided a zip-zac chair for a little girl with Spina Bifida. They were able to give an i-pad to a little boy suffering with cancer for fine motor therapy. With the help of the Pay It Forward Foundation they built a ramp and porch to gain handicap accessibility for another child in our area. Her long term goal with her CRD- No Limits Foundation is to eventually build a playground for disabled children. This is a goal that without doubt, Rylie will accomplish. Rylie is proud that she is helping other children. She is little girl doing BIG things. The best part is, she is just getting started.
Rylie does not look at her disability as a barrier between her and everything she wants to do in her life. She looks forward to being a part of a softball team this spring and wants to be a cheerleader in the future. Rylie is a beautiful child with strawberry blonde hair and a sweet smile, but she is so much more than what meets the eye. She is one of the most inspirational people you could ever meet. Not only has this spunky little girl done amazing things to help other children, but she also has restored faith in many whose lives she has touched. One may think this pretty eight-year-old with a shiny blue walker is disabled, but in all honesty, she is the complete opposite. She is bigger than any obstacle that she may face- bigger than a disability. At only eight, leading by example, Rylie Dour lives a life where “With GOD all things are possible”, a life with absolutely “No Limits”.