When Maggie Vazquez’s class planned a two-day hike, it was a question of how, not if, the sick little girl was going to come with them.
The 10-year-old suffers from Cerebral palsy and couldn’t walk the trail 40 miles from Chicago charter school the Academy of Global Citizenship.
After months of searching for solutions, her teacher Helma Wardenaar decided to simply carry the 62lbs child on her back.
Helma Wardenaar put Maggie Vazquez, 10, in a $300 child carrier and put her on her back through the two-day camping trip
The beloved teacher found a $300 child carrier that would support Maggie’s weight and height and set off with 50 children and 10 staff to Camp Sullivan.
‘We saw birds, frogs and deer. We were able to do everything her peers were doing, she was one of us,’ she told CBS News.
Ms Helma, as her students call her, said carrying Maggie through the May 30 to June 1 camping trip was hard, but the little girl kept her spirits up.
Ms Helma, as her students call her, said carrying Maggie (pictured together) through the May 30 to June 1 camping trip was hard, but the little girl kept her spirits up
The tiny 10-year-old suffers from Cerebral palsy and was not able to walk the trail unaided
‘Maggie was amazing. She sang her own song. When you have a child who is enjoying the moment and being with her peers, those were moments that I was able to push through,’ she said.
Maggie’s mother Michelle Vazquez said Ms Wardenaar, who has known her daughter since kindergarten, went ‘way above and beyond’
‘It’s been amazing, right off the bat, she met Maggie and got involved. She has always been advocating for her. It’s not just with the camping trip that’s just one little piece. There’s a lot of things she does,’ she said.
Maggie was desperate to join her 50 contemporaries on the trek on the trail
The beloved teacher found a $300 child carrier that would support Maggie’s weight