\n\n\n\nHowever, from the moment of his birth, Braden began defying all expectations. With the unwavering support of his family, the little boy began to show signs of improvement.\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe underwent over 30 surgeries, had a tracheotomy at just 3 months old, and once went through a procedure with only a 10% survival rate,\u201d Cheri explained. \u201cWe had to sign the DNR papers, say our goodbyes\u2026 then, unexpectedly, the doctors came out and told us he was okay.\u201d\n\n\n\n
In addition to his family\u2019s love, Braden formed a strong bond with registered nurse Michele Eddings Linn.\n\n\n\n
During his early years, Braden\u2019s health began to decline, leaving his future uncertain.\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnything a mother doesn\u2019t want to hear is what they told us. It\u2019s incredible what faith in God can help you overcome. Everyone who knew us or knew of us was praying for us,\u201d Cheri shared.\n\n\n\n
Michele, who had been by Braden\u2019s side through so much, recalled the night Braden nearly lost his life. \u201cI remember praying, \u2018Lord, just either take him home or make him better,\u2019\u201d she said. \u201cBecause no one could bear to watch him suffer any longer.\u201d\n\n\n\n
Linn shared that when baby Braden survived that night, he became the first patient she had ever seen leave hospice care. The bond they formed over the years grew so strong that Braden later asked Michele, whom he lovingly refers to as his \u201cangel,\u201d to take his senior photos.\n\n\n\n
\u201cSeventeen years ago, I cried because I thought his time on Earth was coming to an end, and now I\u2019m crying because he\u2019s graduating high school, and his life is just beginning!\u201d Linn wrote in a heartfelt Facebook post.\n\n\n\n
\u201cTo watch him grow into this incredible young man has been emotional, but I\u2019m so proud,\u201d Braden\u2019s mom Cheri shared with \u201cThe Epoch Times\u201d.\n\n\n\n
\u201cAs I watched him walk across the stage, every emotion from his first few months came rushing back. I kept thinking, he wasn\u2019t supposed to be doing this. He wasn\u2019t supposed to be able to hold a pencil, speak, see, or hear\u2026 and here we are.\u201d\n\n\n\n To honor this amazing milestone, his parents arranged for Braden to be flown into the middle of a live concert featuring one of his favorite musicians, country singer Cam Thompson, via helicopter.\n\n\n\n Braden described his graduation day as \u201cperfect.\u201d\n\n\n\n \u201c17 years ago, I was this boy\u2019s hospice nurse, and today, I just finished editing his senior pictures!! What a blessing\u2026\u201d\n\n\n\n \u201cI feel pretty good knowing I worked so hard to get to this day because it wasn\u2019t always easy,\u201d Braden said.\n\n\n\n Braden, who used a walker until he was five and eventually learned to walk on his own with extensive therapy, is now proudly serving as a member of the Civil Air Patrol unit in Owensboro, Kentucky.\n\n\n\n He\u2019s living his dream of becoming a firefighter and has recently joined the Moseleyville Fire Department as a volunteer.\n\n\n\n Cheri, his mom, says Braden\u2019s journey serves as a powerful reminder to those facing immense challenges:\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s official! Don\u2019t ever give up\u2026 No matter how hard the mountain is to climb, keep climbing because the view at the top is amazing!\u201d\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" When Braden West was born, doctors delivered heartbreaking news to his parents: their son wouldn\u2019t survive. His mother, Cheri, sensed something was wrong early on. […]\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/legendhorizon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8260"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/legendhorizon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/legendhorizon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/legendhorizon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/legendhorizon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8260"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/legendhorizon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8260\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8261,"href":"https:\/\/legendhorizon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8260\/revisions\/8261"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/legendhorizon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8260"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/legendhorizon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8260"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/legendhorizon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8260"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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