Palatine Youth To Be 'Kid Captain' For Iowa Hawkeye Opener

Eleven-year-old Benjamin Wilson was diagnosed at the age of 5 with severe eye abnormalities that doctors say eventually will lead to blindness.

When the Palatine family first learned of the diagnosis, they feared Benjamin could be blind in both eyes in a few years. But six years later, the condition appears to be progressing slowly.

"Right now if you met him you wouldn't even notice anything," said his mother, Vicki Wilson. "It seems to be going slowly; it's not something we worry about on a daily basis.

On Saturday, Sept. 3, Benjamin will be honored as the 'Kid Captain' at the University of Iowa football team's home opener against Tennessee Tech.

Wilson is participating in the research of Edwin Stone, who is a professor of opthalmology and visual sciences at the University of Iowa and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator.

Doctors believe Vicki and her husband each have a recessive, unidentified gene that causes the condition. Their 8-year-old daughter Chloe also was diagnosed with it.

Stone has been using Benjamin's case in his research. Vicki Wilson said Stone is looking to develop a gene therapy to treat cases such was Benjamin's.

Benjamin travels to the university annually for checkups and to meet with Stone. Vicki Wilson said the family has made an event out of the trip.

"He loves going," Vicki Wilson said. "He's become a big Iowa fan; he wants to go to school there."

As a 'Kid Captain' Benjamin will be honored at midfield before the game. All of the 'Kid Captains' will have their individual stories told throughout the football season and will receive a commemorative jersey.

The 'Kid Captain' program is a partnership between the UI Children's Hospital and the Iowa Hawkeyes to honor patients and celebrate their stories.