Humans of IT: Lucas Jundt

Ashley Garcia, Reporter/Designer

Born in China, Inner Mongolia, Lucas Jundt (10) was abandoned at five days old. Although he went through a hard time at a very young age, Lucas was determined to continue and never give up.

“Being abandoned by my parents when I was five days old was a difficulty,” Jundt said.

Despite Jundt being born in a different country, his parents heard of adoption and welcomed him into their home. Jundt came to America at age seven on March 28th, 2011.

“They heard it on the radio on 104.7 The Fish and 105.3 K-Love in Wisconsin,” Jundt said. “It’s a Christian station that talked about adoption. My brother, Jacob heard it and said, ‘Hey mom dad why don’t we adopt kids from somewhere?’ The main reason was because God called him to.”

Football became a major staple in his life at a very young age. Despite being a double leg amputee, his prosthetic legs made it possible for him to participate in many sports.

“I think he’s done a good job of adapting to the team and finding his role within the team,” football Coach Paul Hoffman said. “The first time my dad showed me football, I thought it was really cool,” Jundt said. “And then what really motivated me was a guy named Shaquem Griffin, he is one handed. He got his hand amputated when he was four years old. [For me], knowing there’s a guy in the NFL that has an amputation is really cool.”

Jundt is a multi-sport athlete participating in football, track, swimming, taekwondo, baseball and wheelchair basketball. Besides playing sports, Jundt looked forward to succeed in life after high school.

“After high school I plan to become a law enforcement officer and train for two years to get ready for the Paralympics.” he said.

He wanted to beat the world record for the 100-meter dash. Regardless of his tough childhood and obstacles throughout the years, Jundt inspired people around him and motivated the people around him.

“Always be kind, don’t give up on life because something is hard, that’s not how you should act,” Jundt said. “You should always act like you want to achieve something. If you want something done you got to get it done.”