From the archives: This story was last updated in October 2019.
Born in 1996 in Russia, Nik Hoot’s biological mother had him during a late-term abortion at 24 weeks. By all rights, Nik shouldn’t have survived at all, but even as a premature baby, he was determined to make it. The “failed” procedure, which resulted in his birth, took a terrible toll, though, depriving him of his legs and parts of his fingers.That awful beginning has never stopped him from making the most of the life he has been given. Growing up in Woodburn, Indiana, in a big family that includes many other adopted children with birth defects, Hoot went on to become a star athlete at his high school, competing in baseball, basketball, football, and wrestling with the disadvantage of prosthetics.
