Lucas’ story: Finding hope again

Aug 24, 2026 | Blog, Intercept

When Lucas was younger, he dreamed of playing in the NFL or NBA. But when he was diagnosed with Becker muscular dystrophy, a rare genetic disorder that causes progressive muscle weakness in the legs, pelvis and heart, those dreams suddenly felt out of reach. As his physical abilities changed, so did his outlook on life. At just 8 years old, Lucas struggled with overwhelming feelings of sadness, isolation and worthlessness.

“He would ask me, ‘What’s the point of being alive if I can’t be a kid?'” his mother, Milissa, recalls. “How do you answer that to an 8-year-old?”

Lucas’ family was heartbroken as they watched him withdraw from the world. He believed he didn’t belong and that no one wanted him. He even talked about not wanting to be alive anymore. His parents knew they needed help.

Lucas and his family were referred to the Youth Villages Intercept program.

When families are shouldering excessive stress, including a child’s mental, emotional or behavioral challenges, Intercept provides intensive, in-home support and behavioral health interventions to empower families to be successful. Alongside their family intervention specialist, Emily Vo, Lucas and his family navigated some of their most difficult moments. Rather than focusing only on Lucas, Emily worked with the entire family, equipping them with the tools, encouragement and strategies to build hope together.

Emily and Lucas worked on identifying feelings, managing stress in healthy ways and expressing difficult feelings appropriately.

Emily also helped Lucas create an emotional first-aid kit called Lucas’ Hope Kit. The hope kit was filled with tangible items and reminders of positive memories, values and reasons to live. Lucas would pull out his hope kit whenever he had negative thoughts.

For Lucas, having someone believe in him made all the difference.

I wouldn’t be where I am today or able to imagine the future I look forward to if it weren’t for Youth Villages.

- Lucas

“Youth Villages sort of reminds you that you are worthwhile,” Lucas said. “You matter to someone out there. Someone wants to see you do a good job.”

As his confidence grew, Lucas began discovering new passions. Today, his favorite thing to do is sing karaoke and perform in his school’s show choir. During free time, he often asks his teacher if he can sing for his classmates, and their enthusiastic applause reminds him of something he once struggled to believe: he has gifts worth sharing.

Seeing Lucas smile again has been life-changing for his family.

“He’s capable of love, he’s capable of talent, he’s capable of having anything and everything,” Milissa said. “To see him finding something he loves and having a smile again — it makes me extremely happy.”

Now, Lucas looks toward the future with hope.

“I wouldn’t be where I am today or able to imagine the future I look forward to if it weren’t for Youth Villages,” he said.

Because of the support his family received through Intercept, Lucas is no longer defined by the challenges he’s faced. Instead, he’s discovering his strengths, pursuing his passions and embracing the future with confidence, one song at a time.