Albuquerque man continues to help others amid his own struggles

Posted: Nov 9, 2020 / 05:34 AM MST / Updated: Nov 9, 2020 / 09:47 AM MST

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – A local philanthropist who’s been giving back to the Albuquerque community since he was a teenager now needs help of his own following a mountain biking crash in Angel Fire. However, despite the devastating injury, he’s staying positive through it all.

The moment 26-year-old Kyle Stepp realized he’d be losing his leg was caught on video following a mountain biking crash in Angel Fire on October 17. “We’re on the last run of the day and I was coming down the mountain, nailing some awesome jumps and I lost control and flew into a tree,” said Stepp.

He’s no stranger to the hospital. When Stepp was just a freshman at Del Norte High School, he was diagnosed with stage four osteosarcoma. “He said the three words that no kid, no adult, no one should ever have to hear in their entire lives and it’s such a common three words in our generation, in our society, ‘you have cancer,'” said Stepp.

During his fight against cancer, his left leg was replaced by an internal prosthetic. “My femur, my knee, and my tibia. So, from my ankle to the femur was replaced with stainless steel,” Stepp explains. He says he knew he’d eventually have an amputation but it came a little sooner than expected. “I knew in that moment, the day I had been anticipating and waiting for, and preparing for had come,” said Stepp.

Now, the cancer survivor, who has dedicated his life to the Children’s Miracle Network, and raising money for the UNM Children’s Hospital, needs help paying his own bills. So, his friends set up a fundraising page for him.

But even still, he’s looking past his own needs, and finding ways to give back to others. “I immediately asked, whatever we raise, after medical bills are done, can we please do something good with it?” asked Stepp.

Once his medical bills are paid Stepp plans to set up a fund at UNM Foundation to support others experiencing the loss of a limb. For more information on the Road to Resilience: A Fundraiser for Kyle’s Recovery, visit KyleStepp.com.