Proud parent; Proud Father!
My son, David, will turn 19 years old in a couple of weeks. He was born 4 months premature, weighed less than 2 pounds and was diagnosed with cerebral palsy [1] at the age of 1. We were told David would never walk on his own or be able to talk using words. David was able to walk on his own by the age of 5 and started using words by the age of 7. The past 10 years have been so amazing; he can now read books on his own and carries on small conversations with others. Last year, David walked a mile and a half at a Polar Plunge Walk for Special Olympics [2] without stopping. He can now walk up the staircase at his school without holding onto the railing. In addition, David competed at the Indiana State Special Olympic Summer Games in the sport of powerlifting and is the first powerlifter at the summer games competing with cerebral palsy. David came home with 4 gold medals. David has surpassed everyone’s expectations. I can’t stress enough to parents: keep working with your children, it’s so amazing what they can overcome and accomplish. I am so happy to have him in my life as well as his doctors and teachers. I realize that no one can do it all alone, and we are so very blessed to have such caring people surrounding us. I am truly proud of my son, David.
~ Timothy Paul (Proud Father)
Share a Proud Moment with us Next Issue! Proud Moments can be any time that you have been extremely proud of your child with special needs. It can be when they are giving it their all or reaching a milestone. You may feel you can only share your excitement or enthusiasm with someone that will really understand. We understand. [email protected]
David Paul exhibiting an “I CAN” attitude Photo courtesy Timothy Paul
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- Special Olympics Is Truly Special and Much More Than Just Sports [2]
- Special Olympics Success and Encouragement for All! [8]
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This post originally appeared on our November/December 2014 Magazine [17]