A five-year-old girl who lost her foot in a horrific incident with a lawnmower shocked everyone when she walked at her graduation on Wednesday.
Italia McAllister of Elkhart, Indiana, was chasing her grandfather around as he rode his ride-on lawnmower on the evening of May 8 when he reversed the machine – not realizing she was behind him – and accidentally ran over her foot.
Her grandfather, a former EMT, was able to stop the bleeding and put her foot in a splint before she was airlifted to hospital, but doctors were not able to save her injured foot.
Despite her horrible circumstances, Italia has maintained a positive attitude and given her all to physical therapy – allowing her to exceed everybody’s expectations and take part in kindergarten graduation.
Italia McAllister, five, has exceeded all expectations and walked across her kindergarten graduation stage just one month after losing her foot
The elementary school student used a wheelchair for parts of the ceremony, but was able to get on her feet when it came time to accept her certificate
Her emotional parents told WSBT of their immense pride in the five-year-old, who they say has been recovering well beyond what they ever expected.
‘Every day she’s taking on new things like having to go to the bathroom different with the rail or having to get dressed. She’s been doing it by herself,’ mom Robin McAllister said.
‘It’s just like your eyes are just coming out of your head because you just don’t realize she can do it herself but she can.’
Moving video shows Italia using a walker to move across the hall’s floor as her classmates and their families applaud her.
The five-year-old appears proud, but focused, as she pushes her walker and hops towards her award – stopping only to quickly shake a teacher’s hand.
Italia lost her foot in May when her grandfather accidentally ran over it with his ride on lawnmower, not realising she was behind him
Though her grandfather stopped the bleeding with a splint and Italia was airlifted to hospital, doctors weren’t able to save her foot
The kindergartner has worked hard at physical therapy over the past month and managed to walk herself across the hall to receive her graduation certificate
Pictured: Italia still smiling as she recovers in hospital. Her parents have credited her positive attitude to her immensely successful rehabilitation
Though Italia has made great strides in her recovery, she is aware of what happened to her foot, and the thought can sometimes upset her, her father Cody said.
‘Some days it’s rough and some days it’s good. She has her emotional days, we have our emotional days,’ he said.
Italia will need extensive physical therapy and multiple surgeries for years to come, which her family are currently fundraising for.
At the end of the month, Italia will return to Riley Hospital in Indianapolis for a check-up.
Provided all is well, she will be fitted for a prosthetic foot, which Robin and Cody hope she’ll be walking on by the time she starts first grade.
The Indiana girl could be fitted with a prosthetic foot at the end of the month, and her parents hope to see her walking on her own by the time first grade starts