The parents of a 9-year-old boy who suffered devastating brain damage after choking on a piece of apple are desperately trying to raise $70,000 for robotic technology that will allow him to take steps. Kelly Makiha reports.

Little Neihana Renata was bumbling around on his wobbly feet and legs exploring life and learning - just like any other toddler.

It was 2016 and he was attending daycare in Rotorua when he was served cut-up apple - food which at the time the Ministry of Education did not recommend for children so young.

He choked and was starved of oxygen for 30 minutes.

Neihana Renata was left severely brain-damaged after choking. Photo / File

Today, he’s severely brain-damaged. He’s still unable to put one foot in front of the other and lives his life being moved from sitting in a wheelchair, standing in a frame or lying down.

Sitting with the Rotorua Daily Post Weekend in an interview, his mother, Marama Renata, grabs her boy’s legs and wriggles them lovingly.

“We just want to go for a walk, aye Neihana?” she said to him with a big smile.

The little boy’s eyes light up and he makes a noise - that’s how he laughs.

Neihana Renata, 9, and mother Marama Renata. Photo / Alex Cairns

Life for Neihana could all change but his parents’ dream of seeing him walk again comes with a $70,000 price tag.

Marama - a fully trained general practitioner - knows the complications her son will face in years to come if he doesn’t start walking soon.

“Kids with cerebral palsy need to be standing or walking because they get all sorts of problems like dislocated hips if they don’t. We are already having big problems with his feet.”

The devoted mum gave up her medical career after Neihana’s choking incident happened and is now his full-time carer. Caring for him involves a lot but she and husband Wi, who works in Kawerau, also have two other children - Neihana’s twin sister, Aotea, 9, and their newest addition to their family, Teia, 3.

“We were at the playground and I was watching children running around and I thought to myself, ‘He needs to use his legs’.”

She started researching and came across the Trexo walker.

It is new technology, one she believes is a first in the world, that features a robotic system that would allow Neihana to take steps - giving him not only a fun and new experience but physical benefits such as improved vision from brain stimulation and movement around his joints that would reduce pain and complications in years to come.

The Trexo was invented by an engineer in Canada who had a nephewwho couldn’t walk. The reported results are enough to convince Marama and Wi that they should try their best to get the funding together.

Neihana Renata (9) and mother Marama Renata. The family are trying to raise $70,000 for a robotic walker from Canada. Photo / Alex Cairns

Marama has set up a Givealittle page for her son and she’s put aside her discomfort of revealing their personal lives in the media for the sake of their son.

Given the technology is new, it is not funded in New Zealand. They would need to buy the robotic legs, treadmill, pay for training and shipping from Canada.

“I honestly don’t like asking for money but I desperately want him to have a chance to use it so I’m quite motivated.”

Wi and Marama Renata with their children three years ago, Neihana, 6, Teia, 9 months, Aotea, 6. Photo / Kylie Day Photography

It’s not the first time Marama has had to put her family “out there”.

The Renatas spent the years following his choking incident campaigning for countless hours for change in food standards at early childhood centres.

Their fight resulted in victory in 2019 when the ministry announced a review and in 2021 the rules were changed. Now high-risk choking foods are banned, not just not recommended.

Meanwhile, in 22 days since launching their Givealittle page, the Renatas have managed to raise $10,800. They are hopeful publicity will help them raise as much as possible for the sake of their son.

“We just want him to have fun. It is so boring just sitting in the wheelchair all day and then being moved somewhere else.”

Wi said their son was fun-loving and when they heard him banging around, they knew he was enjoying himself.

“When we move his legs in a walking motion, he loves it,” Wi said.

If you can help the Renatas reach their goal for Neihana, go to their Givealittle page.

Kelly Makiha is a senior journalist who has reported for the Rotorua Daily Post for more than 25 years, covering mainly police, court, human interest and social issues.