A grade 11 student at Howe Sound Secondary School has 21 months to learn to walk so she can get up on the stage at her graduation ceremony and accept her diploma under her own steam.
Josie Jagodnik, 15, suffers from cerebral palsy (CP) and spends most of her time in a mechanized wheelchair.
She is participating in a research program aimed at proving that those who suffer from CP who try to learn to walk at a young age have a better chance at being successful if they start early.
Josie was introduced to the idea of learning to walk after her physiotherapist at Sunnyhill Hospital for Children suggested Josie was a good candidate for a research program underway at the hospital.
According to Josie's mother, researcher Val Ward was impressed with Josie's first attempt at walking. The effort was done using a treadmill while Josie was in a special harness attached to a support frame.
With each session under Ward's supervision, Josie's skill has improved.
The teen said the sessions are hard work but she has progressed from walking with the assistance of the machine in the hospital for as long as eight minutes at a time.
"It is tough, really tough," Josie said.
She and her mother are currently driving to Vancouver two days a week for sessions with Ward.
They want to assemble the necessary equipment in their home and at Howe Sound Secondary so Josie can exercise and practice walking at home and at school. If they gather the equipment they can reduce the number of trips they make to Vancouver.
A friend of the family is currently working toward getting a version of the support frame fabricated locally. Commercial versions of the device sell for more than $7,000. Josie's mother, Jessica, said she believes a homemade version can be fabricated for far less money.
Josie's mother is currently applying for funds from every possible source she can find to get all the equipment needed to get Josie on her feet.
"This is what people with special needs can go through," she said.
Josie said she is getting amazing support from all the people around her, including her family, her friends, the healthcare professionals working with her, the school district and her yoga instructor.
With the help of others she hopes to walk before she starts grade 12.
"I want to walk up and get my own graduation certificate," Josie said from her mechanical wheelchair.
If Josie's plan pans out, she will be on her feet in June of 2007 and she'll climb the stairs and walk across the stage in the glare of spotlights with her peers witnessing her dream come true.jfrench@squamishchief.com
