Inspiring teen overcomes broken neck, walks the stage at high school graduation

Alexander Harris (Photo: Twitter)
Alexander Harris (Photo: Twitter)

California teenager Alexander Harris broke his neck in a dirt bike crash last year and was told he might never be able to walk again.

But the high school senior proved the doctors wrong at his graduation ceremony, KTLA reports.

On June 13, the young man, who has had a remarkable recovery, stepped out of his wheelchair and walked across the stage to pick up his diploma.

In a video posted on Twitter, the young man uses to arms of his wheelchair to push himself up. Using a walker, he proceeds up a ramp to step on stage and receive his diploma. Needless to say, he was greeted with a huge standing ovation from his classmates, teachers and families at the ceremony.

The teens walk was result of ten difficult months of recovery, following Harris’ debut as a professional motocross racer. During a jump, he went over his handlebars and hit the ground. The teen felt nothing. He had snapped his neck, critically injuring his spine and spinal cord.

A surgeon at Loma Linda University Medical Center told the teens parents that his injuries could leave the athletic and active young man a quadriplegic.

"Ten months ago, he couldn't lift his hands to drink, I had to feed him, I had to give him, you know, whatever he needed, and to see where he's at today,” Alexander’s mother Peggy Harris told KTLA.

But Harris was eager to resume his active life, and ignored the doctors dire prognosis. After surgery, Harris underwent months of physical therapy and treatment, working hard to walk again.

"To watch him work hard, it's been amazing,” said Ken Harris, Alexander’s father.

Added his mother: “He’s a miracle and an inspiration. He’s awesome.”

Harris has enrolled at Citrus College with the goal of becoming a personal trainer. And for those inspired by his story, he has three simple words: “Never give up.”

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