When Sean Kraft was rushed to Sanford Health in Bismarck with severe neck and spinal injuries, his family faced a harrowing summer. The 5th‑grader Sadie Kraft, who loves sloths, watched her dad struggle with walking and pain.
Sean’s discs were ruptured and compressing his spinal cord, a condition doctors described as “very, very ruptured.” He underwent surgery later that week, and while he recovered, a simple “Daddy Sloth” T‑shirt sparked a conversation with a Sanford social worker.
Zoo partnership brings a dream to life
The social worker learned of Sadie’s passion for sloths and the family’s perseverance throughout the summer. She reached out to the Roosevelt Zoo in Minot, which agreed to make an exception to its usual 14‑year‑old age requirement for handling animals.
“Roosevelt Zoo not only lifted the age requirement, but also gifted the family the experience,” said social worker Kristin Wentz‑Krumwiede.
Meeting Helen the sloth
A few weeks after Sean’s surgery, the Kraft family traveled to the zoo and met Helen, a slow‑moving sloth. Sadie got one‑on‑one time with the animal, even training and feeding her for the first time.
“I was like pretty excited, and I was shocked because this is like a once‑in‑a‑lifetime thing,” Sadie said. She added that feeding Helen was a surprise she didn’t expect.
Family gratitude
Sean expressed how much the gesture meant after a difficult year. “It brought tears to our eyes. It was above and beyond. It was really touching for herself and even Sanford to go above and beyond,” he said, calling the experience a “breath of fresh air” after their challenges.
Sadie, who reportedly has more than 100 stuffed sloths at home, will cherish the memory of meeting her favorite animal for years to come.
Original reporting: KFYR-TV Bismarck (news) — read the source article.
