Hoboken Middle School eighth-grader Jiel Mixson used to not like reading. But once he heard that former Rutgers football player Eric LeGrand was scheduled to lead an assembly for the school’s young readers, Jiel got right to work.
On Oct. 5, Middle School students who completed over 33,000 minutes of reading got to enjoy an assembly led by LeGrand, who is now a motivational speaker.
LeGrand was paralyzed from the neck down in 2010 while playing for Rutgers as a defensive tackle. After that, he founded the charity “Team LeGrand.”
Facing adversity
At the Oct. 5 event, LeGrand shared his experiences, from the game where he first suffered his life-changing spinal chord injury, through his months in the hospital undergoing surgery, and his stay in Kessler Rehabilitation Center, where he relearned everyday life tasks and learned how to adapt to his new paralysis.
He shared one message: stay positive, even when you are faced with adversity.
“In life, we’re all going to face some type of adversity, whether you’re five years old or 65 years old,” he said. “How you handle it is ultimately what defines you as a person.”
He added that “In life, we got to be appreciative of the things we do have. Don’t focus on the things you don’t have.”
LeGrand’s visit to Hoboken Middle School was about more than just recognizing the homerooms with the most reading minutes, according to Principal Harold Abraham. It was about inspiring the students to never give up and to remember to try and view the glass half full.
“Eric’s story is one that has touched our entire school community,” said Abraham. “Our students have learned the importance of resilience and determination.”
“He is such a role model,” said Jiel Mixson. “I play football too, and to think that something like that could happen and he is still so strong and positive is amazing. He won’t let anything stop him. He has changed my life. Seriously.”
Shoot for the stars
Seventh-grader Ryan Balouma said LeGrand has inspired him to not give up.
“He worked so hard and everything he gained he lost when he got injured, but even though that happened he won’t quit, he is just working harder,” said Ryan.
At the end of the assembly, the students presented LeGrand with a special gift for inspiring them.
Middle School art teacher Jessica Fasolino chose several students and together they created the Tinker Hatfield Design Team, named after Tinker Hatfield, who is famous for designing sneakers for Nike.
Over the month of September, the Tinker Hatfield Design Team conceptualized and custom-painted a pair of Nike Jordan Retro 1’s, LeGrand’s favorite sneaker, to present to him.
The design included a cityscape, spray cans, the Rutgers R and the inspirational reminder to “shoot for the stars.”
Marilyn Baer can be reached at Marilynb@hudsonreporter.com or comment online at hudsonreporter.com
