CHATTANOOGA, Tennessee (CNN) -- An annual family fishing trip to the Florida keys took a bloody and life-changing turn for Jordan Thomas.



Noah Parton, 6, got prosthetics from foundation started by Jordan Thomas, right.



"It was a beautiful day and we were going to go out spear fishing that night," said Thomas, who was 16 during the 2005 trip.



But when he jumped into the water, the boat's wake dragged Thomas hard into its sharp, whirling propellers.



He immediately knew what was about to happen.



"I looked down -- my black fins were gone and all I saw was red just everywhere," said Thomas, an athletic teen who was captain of his high school's golf team. "But I had this unbelievable calmness over my body."  Watch video of Thomas telling his story »



His father and mother, both doctors from Chattanooga, Tennessee, jumped into action.



"All of a sudden, my 16-year old, happy-go-lucky captain of the golf team was potentially dying," said Dr. Liz Kennedy-Thomas.



She worked to stanch the blood flow from her son's legs while his father rushed the boat to shore and fetched paramedics.



Thomas was rushed to a hospital where he spent the next two weeks -- undergoing several surgeries on what was left of his legs and, along the way, discovering what would become his life's work.



While there, Thomas visited other amputees.



"I just remember seeing so many kids who didn't have parents, didn't have health care," he said. "I just knew that the future was grim for them."



The top-of-the-line prosthetics Thomas was fitted with -- the ones that helped him return to the golf links -- cost about $22,000. He learned that many insurance plans only cover about $5,000.



That's especially tough on child amputees, who will outgrow several limbs before adulthood.



"I had no clue," he said. "It's one of those things, unless you're affected by it, you just don't know."



Thomas knew he was lucky. With a financially stable family, he'll always be able to afford good legs. He asked his family to give a donation to help others, but ultimately they decided to launch a fundraising foundation together.



"By the time we got home, we had bracelets -- all kinds of stuff," Kennedy-Thomas said. "The foundation was just sort of started by the time we got home."



The Jordan Thomas Foundation has raised $350,000 through bracelets, charity golf tournaments and cookouts. Some of that is paying for prosthetics for three children until they reach age 18.



One of them is Noah Parton.



The precocious 6-year-old born with a congenital heart defect had a complication with a tube inserted in his right leg, leading to an amputation above his knee.



His family's insurance would only pay for what's called a "stubby" -- a wooden artificial leg without a bendable knee.



"His first bendable knee ... didn't have a certain number or something that would apply and they refused to pay for it," said Noah's mother, Nancy Parton, who lives with her son about an hour north of Chattanooga, in Evensville, Tennessee.



Noah couldn't run and play with other children. And even day-to-day activities were tough.



"It was hard to put him in the car because his leg stuck out straight and I'd have my seat up as far as it would go and it would still hit the back of the seat," she said.



Thomas's foundation stepped in, buying Noah several knee devices -- a new one for each new leg he needs as he grows.



Now, his mom said, Noah is unstoppable.



"He loves to climb stairs now; he tries to ride bicycles," she said. "You name it, he does it.



"Take him to the park
How much money did they raise? What turned tragic for 16 year old? What kind of trip turned tragic for Jordan Thomas? What type of trip turned tragic? How much money has the Jordan Thomas Foundation raised? What did the Jordan Thomas Foundation raise? What did others struggle to pay for?
$350,000 An annual family fishing trip annual family fishing annual family fishing $350,000 $350,000 top-of-the-line prosthetics
question: How much money did they raise?, answer: $350,000 | question: What turned tragic for 16 year old?, answer: An annual family fishing trip | question: What kind of trip turned tragic for Jordan Thomas?, answer: annual family fishing | question: What type of trip turned tragic?, answer: annual family fishing | question: How much money has the Jordan Thomas Foundation raised?, answer: $350,000 | question: What did the Jordan Thomas Foundation raise?, answer: $350,000 | question: What did others struggle to pay for?, answer: top-of-the-line prosthetics