TROUP, Texas — Cooper Reid's journey to graduation is a story of resilience and triumph.
The young man from Troup has overcome immense challenges to reach a pivotal moment in his life. He's now a high school graduate, and what’s most important is he got to do it alongside his peers and educators who’ve seen him at his best and worst.
Donning their caps and gowns, everyone gathered Friday night for a momentous occasion -- graduation day! Cooper Reid was one of 91 graduates who crossed the stage and earned his diploma.
Before that moment, CBS19 got to speak to his family and their support team, who shared how he's been able to grow despite his challenges over the past two years.
Cooper is a smart and determined teenager, who experienced a life-altering injury while playing in the Troup High School homecoming football game in 2022.
Now, he spends his days inside a rehab facility in Houston, learning how to be himself again.
"We want to get Cooper involved in participating as much as possible in the act of standing up and active maintaining standing balance. And keeping his head up and being engaged in a kind of a activity and standing that we were trying to do with him," his physical therapist Louis Niccolo said.
Niccolo said Cooper is battling dystonia, which is a neurological movement disorder. And he recently underwent a procedure to install what’s called a baclofen pump, a device that helps Cooper manage muscle tightness.
His mother Susanne Reid explained the pump helps Cooper overcome the tightness of his muscles and things that are fighting against him.
Susanne spends her days right by her son's side and reflecting on the strides he’s made.
"If I go back and I look at pictures and videos and stuff, I can (see) there's a huge difference," she said.
The biggest difference is improvement in his communication.
"He uses his communication board very fluently. And you can tell there's a lot of humor there, and humor is a very complex cognitive task," Niccolo said.
Cooper’s ability to communicate has been a pivotal development for the family. Susanne uses a communication board to bridge the gap and it’s made a huge difference in Cooper’s therapy sessions.
"He's just always cracking a joke," Susanne said.
That same communication method was instrumental for Cooper as he worked with his homebound teacher, Tracey Mekalip, to finish up his final credits. Mekalip helped Cooper get through his last couple of classes. She would visit him twice a week for two hours and solely focus on getting his work done.
"It just makes my day when I see his progress, and him achieving some of his goals and things," Mekalip said.
Susanne noted her son has always been a straight A or B student and earned a commended status on his STAAR test.
"He's has always been a really good student, and he's earned it," she said.
Earning his high school diploma despite all of the challenges, Cooper is proving that anything is possible! And his community has been there providing support along the way.
Cooper's next step is to keep going through rehab to get stronger, his mom said.
"Hopefully, one day he will be independent enough to take care of himself and do the things that he could do daily," Susanne said. "But we'll always be there to support him (and) take care of him."
And as far as his own plans for his life, Cooper said himself he wants to be a professional angler. Those big dreams are attainable for Cooper, who has a bright and successful future.