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Debbie Gregg can dance again now that she has a new prosthetic leg.

A single mom who works two jobs, she was only able to afford the leg with the help of Limbs for Life, an Oklahoma City nonprofit.

Gregg’s struggle to have a limb started when she was 18. A car wreck severed her left leg below the knee. Gregg is one of approximately 1.7 million people living with limb loss, according to the National Limb Loss Information Center. It is estimated that one out of every 200 people in the United States has had an amputation.

A legal settlement paid for her first artificial leg. Then she was married for 20 years to a man whose insurance covered the replacement legs she needs about every two to three years. Gregg said the prosthetics not only wear out, but ongoing changes in the shape of the human body causes them to longer fit.

After she was divorced, things got difficult. She had to be creative.

“There was a doctor in Tulsa named Leo Beery,” she said. “He also taught a class on making prosthetics at Okmulgee Tech. For 10 years, I would go and sit in on the classes. His students would look at my leg and ask me questions about the amputation and my prosthetic limb. The students would make me a leg when I needed one.”

Gregg, who works part time as a beautician doing nails and also as an office worker for Janway Chiropractic, has no insurance.

When Beery moved, Gregg was stuck without a way to replace her leg. That’s when her daughter got online and researched Limbs for Life. After a lengthy application process, Limbs for Life approved $1,600 to pay for a prosthetic.

“I love to do country dancing,” she said. “I dance again now. I wouldn’t be able to do it without Limbs for Life.”

Limbs for Life co-founder Craig Gavras started the organization in 1995 after losing a limb in a police academy training accident.

“We look at each case individually,” Gavras said. “A lot of people who need prosthetic limbs have insurance but can’t afford the co-pay. Or it’s a 50 percent insurance and they can’t afford their part, or the insurance only pays for one prosthetic in a lifetime. Some don’t have any insurance.”

Gavras said Limbs for Life works with prosthetic clinics across the country who agree to donate their labor. Parts manufacturers donate prosthetic components to Limbs for Life. The cost of an above-the-knee prosthesis can be reduced from $21,000 to $2,000, Gavras said.

“In the United States this year, about 260 patients got limbs from us,” he said. “Another 400 got either a foot, a knee, or some kind of component that kept their prosthesis going. We’re just a financial bridge to help people get back to a normal, productive life.”

Limbs for Life also collects used limbs for distribution in developing countries such as the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Turkey and countries in Africa. Information: limbsforlife.org.

Reach Keith Purtell at 684-2925 or kpurtell@ muskogeephoenix.com.