Cade Maynor walks at school ceremony

Cade Maynor is a special little boy. Last summer, the Pepperell boy was hit by a tree while swimming and suffered serious head injuries. He was also paralyzed from the waist down.

He regained his speech this past fall, and we have been working with Cade since November, twice a week three hours a day.

So you can imagine how thrilled we were to help Cade walk across the stage at Pepperell Primary’s third grade completion ceremony. He was greeted like a superstar, with his classmates cheering for him all the way.

From the Rome News-Tribune account of the ceremony (5-24-12):

The audience erupted into applause and whistles as they came to their feet to cheer Cade across the stage. He turned his head toward the crowd as a voice raised above the rest and exclaimed, “You’re the man Cade!” He smiled and continued onward.

His mother, Corinthia Maynor, was alongside him as he traveled 40 feet across the stage, the longest distance he had walked since the injury. It was three weeks ago that he took his first few steps, and Maynor said he never once fussed or complained through the ordeal.

“It’s amazing how resilient he is,” said Maynor. “Every day he continues to get better. He has been through so much to overcome so much.”

Our own Dave McRay and Lindsay Johnson were there to help Cade cross the stage. We couldn’t be prouder!

Watch a video of Cade walking at the ceremony below:

Friday, June 1st, 2012 in Inspiring