Geelong brothers Brodie and Kye Kelly are making incredible achievements in their own ways. Younger brother Brodie lives with complex needs, while the elder Kye chases his basketball dream. Jena Carr speaks with the brothers and mum Deanne Burrows about the family’s successes and challenges.
Geelong’s Brodie and Kye Kelly won’t let anything get in the way of their strong brotherly bond, especially not a wheelchair.
Fifteen-year-old Brodie lives with a neurological disorder and complex needs that require him to use a wheelchair, a condition that remains undiagnosed to this day.
Mum Deanne Burrows said she knew from his birth that something wasn’t right with Brodie when he wasn’t feeding properly, with medical tests finding an abnormality in his brain.
“He doesn’t have a proper diagnosis, and we don’t know where it comes from, whether it’s genetic or environmental or anything like that,” she said.
“He’s got signs of cerebral palsy, autism, an intellectual disability, a physical disability, epilepsy and a global developmental delay as well as being nonverbal.
“Medical professionals have tried to work it out a lot of times, including some worldwide research and stuff like that, but we still don’t know what’s going on.”
Brodie spent close to the first six years of his life in and out of hospitals, with the family moving to Geelong from the north-west of Victoria.
“Brodie’s condition has changed us massively. I left my career, and we run our own side business to help, but it doesn’t cover everything,” Deanne said.
“It just had a massive impact financially and emotionally, and it still does, but we’re just taking things step by step. It has also made us more understanding of everybody’s situations.
“People say that they understand, but they won’t understand everything that we do for Brodie. Every single decision is based around making sure that our family works together as a unit.”
Despite his challenges, Brodie is a highly determined and social kid who loves hanging out with his family and listening to music while feeling the beats come out of his favourite speaker.
Deanne said Brodie also likes to ride his adaptive bike, which was provided by the children’s charity Variety Victoria.
“He’s not shy to go outside and… he loves to ride a bike because he loves to be outdoors. He likes to be like every other normal kid,” she said.
“He’s fun and very cheeky. When he’s happy, he’s happy, laughing and amazing. He also loves his music and enjoys anything with a bass… He’s amazing and loves to be with his family.
“To a regular person, they might not think that Brodie can ride a bike because he’s in a wheelchair, but Variety gave him that opportunity to show people that he can do things other regular kids can.
“We’ve got this idea that he’s going to be a social media influencer… It might sound weird, but we reckon that he might go to all the music concerts to promote music, and he loves to take photos.”
Older brother Kye, 17, is a promising young basketballer who recently returned from a trip to the USA to play in front of college scouts.
He now plays at a state representative level and dreams of one day making it onto the National Basketball Association (NBA), a professional sporting league in North America.
Kye was awarded the 2024 Variety Young Sports Achiever of the Year. He said his biggest inspiration was his younger brother, who was always ready to cheer him on from the sidelines.
“Whenever I go to basketball games, play or train, he always comes and sits on the sidelines with his speaker and enjoys the atmosphere,” he said.
“Some of the things he’s gone through with his surgeries, seizures and his disabilities are massive. I don’t think I could go through it, so he inspires me to do the best I can.
“Most of the time we go out the back, and I’ll shoot hoops while he’s out there watching me with his speaker. Sometimes he will be wheeling around and playing defence on me.
“He’s my biggest supporter, especially with his tunes. We have music running through the house all the time, and we also go on bikes together. He follows me, or I chase him sometimes.
“It was a different experience playing in front of all those coaches and players at a different level. They’re more physical, quick and hungry for the ball. It was definitely a wake-up call to go harder.”
Deanne said that Brodie and Kye were “both really good kids” and encouraged other families going through a similar situation to take everything one step at a time.
“We have people coming through our house all the time helping us, so we don’t get much of a break from people and that’s hard in itself,” she said.
“We just try to make his life normal. It’s important to give your kids as many opportunities as possible, and you can make it work. It’s just that determination you need to have and staying together as a family is crucial.
“It’s so important for other families to know these things are available to them. We could never afford to send Kye to America to play in front of big-time college coaches or to buy Brodie an adaptive bike, but Variety Victoria has made all of that happen and we are so grateful.”
