Posted: August 3, 2016
Life with Cerebral Palsy can be very frustrating and sometimes it can be significantly important to get a little pick-me-up to keep from getting discouraged. There are many ups and downs in life and we all could use some inspiration to keep us headed in the right direction. Since we love sharing good stories, we found 10 inspiring stories about Cerebral Palsy. With each of these stories, we do not look to highlight the condition but, instead, the mentality and effort put forth by children, families and communities to get past Cerebral Palsy and change lives.
Your Dose of Cerebral Palsy Inspiration
This first story is about a man – Bryan Bjorklund – who has Cerebral Palsy and has had many health problems. There was a 12-year gap between his high school and college graduations, but his determination kept him pushing through. He was hospitalized and even homeless at one point during that gap. He did end up graduating and got a standing ovation. The determination of Biorklund gives us all hope and shows that everything is possible, despite setbacks.
Another great education story is Angela Oyama. Oyama has spastic Cerebral Palsy, but never let that get in the way of achieving her academic dreams. She graduated from high school with a Foreign Language Award and plans on going to college to learn more foreign languages to become a translator.
Tyler Born is inspiring others with CP to work out and push themselves to the limit. To track his own personal fitness progress, he started to record his workouts and posted them to YouTube. He soon found out that he was motivating others. Born is showing others that if you work hard then you can get closer and closer to your fitness goals.
A great feel-good story is the one about Eric Faber and the “Boom Boom” Mancini Foundation. As like some families with a child with CP, the Faber family was having a hard time handling costs of physical therapy and other medical costs. The Mancini Foundation set up a golf event to raise money for the Faber family. This story gives hope to those CP families who need a little help; there are people out there who are more than willing to help.
Children with CP dream of doing amazing things (like every child), even despite their challenges. A 9-year-old boy – Bailey Matthews – completed his second children’s triathlon back in July at Castle Howard, England. Just like the first year, he crossed the finish line without his walker!
It takes guts to get in front of a huge crowd and sing the national anthem, but it didn’t break Marlana Vanhoose’s confidence. Vanhoose is blind and has Cerebral Palsy and performed for the Republican National Convention. She wasn’t expected to live past 1, but is now 20 years old and performs at events all over the United States.
Shasha Bogosian is using her joy of art to give back to hospitals. Bogosian has CP herself, but puts her hobby to good use. She paints jeans and sells them to donate money to hospitals. Her jean orders are piling up so much that she might even raise the prices. Keep up the good work Bogosian!
Being in a wheelchair has not stopped Shenaragh Nemani from doing what she loves: salsa dancing. She has won a spot in the World Latin Dance Cup and will be competing in December. She is the first dancer in a wheelchair to qualify in the limitless division. Anything is possible if you put your mind to it.
To raise money for a surgery that might help Finley Smallwood walk again, the community of Eastvale, California came together. Smallwood’s mother and friend created a “Do You Dare to Dance” challenge where people can post videos of dancing and donate money. Eventually, the services district joined in along with other local groups to help raise even more money. This story is another up-lifting one that shows that families with CP are not alone and are supported by their communities.
Drew Bremer has always played soccer and even played varsity soccer in high school and college. He never thought about the U.S Paralympic team until he saw a retweet about it while watching the U.S women’s team in the World Cup. The Paralympics’ will be held in September and Bremer has been playing in a tournament to see if he can be selected for the U.S team.
It can be easy to give up hope and give up on your dreams, but with some inspiration, we all can keep our hope alive. Hope for your child, hope for your sibling, grandchild, yourself, and whoever it may be, we need to keep hopeful and push forward. Inspiring stories can do just that: keep us hopeful and motivated. Share these stories and share your own stories to inspire others and keep moving forward. We would love to hear what inspires you so please leave your inspiration in the comments. Let’s inspire each other!
If you have any questions about Cerebral Palsy or how we can help, don’t hesitate to give us a call at (800) 692-4453 or fill out our contact form on Facebook or our website.
