MOORESVILLE, Ind. — High school seniors across Indiana are receiving their diplomas this month. One student is inspiring his classmates as he walks across the stage.
Saturday is the start of a new chapter for Mooresville High School seniors, and it begins the moment they cross the stage. But for one student, the work to get to this moment was a little harder.
"They're long leg braces," said Lucas Grounds. "They go up to my hips and they lock out at my knees. That's my biggest thing is I can't straighten my legs to hold myself."
Lucas was paralyzed from the waist down following a dirt bike accident about two years ago. It hasn't slowed him down. He has continued to beat the odds and has achieved every milestone since, even getting his driver's license and getting back into racing.
"Anything with a motor, I'm still getting into like I was before," said Lucas.
Graduation was next on his list. His mother Shanda said Lucas started planning the moment while in a bed at Riley Hospital for Children, the day after his accident.
"He told me 'I'm not going to let this impact my life, I'm going to do exactly everything that I did before,'" Shanda said.
Lucas said using the braces to get back on his feet has been a surreal feeling.
"At first, it's like 'I'm really tall, I'm really up here.' It felt really good because it's been so long since I've stood up. It's a really cool feeling and felt good to know I can still do those things," said Lucas.
For Shanda, seeing this moment means everything.
"We were told two years ago he would never be able to move everything below his belly button and we should get used to his new normal," she said.
"I'm so excited for his future and I'm so excited of what he's accomplished, of being able to walk across the stage."
He hopes he made it a memorable moment, not only for his family but for everyone in the gym.
"In the end, the chair doesn't have to define you," said Lucas. "The situation doesn't have to define you. Do things that you've never seen done before. If you think you want to do that, then try and do it."
Words of wisdom for this new chapter.