When his parents found out that he had hydrocephalus they ruthlessly left him…

Hydrocephalus is the buildup of fluid in the cavities (ventricles) deep within the brain.

The excess fluid increases the size of the ventricles and puts pressure on the brain. It can cause learning disabilities, speech problems, memory problems, short attention span, vision problems, problems with physical coordination, epilepsy and many others…

After he was completely abandoned, Dima was given to an orphanage for children with disabilities in Kramatorsk, Eastern Ukraine.

When the poor boy was only 4 years old, he wasn’t able to walk or eat by himself. The staff at the orphanage worried that he might not mature as he should with the lack of growth.

They were hoping he might get to live longer. At that time for Dima to even be alive was a miracle to he personnel at the orphanage.

Due to the conflict in 2014, Dima had to leave to seek safer place for him.

They though Dima would be a casualty due to the lack of water, food and medicine. They even invited priest to pray for him before he ‘went’.

But Dima was a fighter, despite everything that happened in his life. He made it out alive like the other kids.

A family, Ernest and Ruth Chaves of Vermont, who had previously adopted seven children, adopted Dima and simply fell in love with him!

They quickly finished all the papers and officially became his parents. Zebadiah has become a loving nickname for Dima.

Thanks to the love and care of his new family, Dima was able to walk with a walker by himself! He was also able to feed himself and became proficient in each of these abilities in less than a year.

Zebadiah is a true fighter pushes himself by the day to improve his motor as well as mental skills. As an addition he speaks English and Ukrainian with ease.