Heart of a hero: Student, told he'd never walk, runs through "T"
November 11, 2009 23:06 PM
When Bobby and Monica Trail found out they were expecting their first child, a son, they were elated.
"Immediately, I thought, 'My son one day will be a Volunteer fan, too. Maybe even a Volunteer.' That was what I was hoping." says Bobby.
NICK'S BIRTH
But from the start, there were problems. Nick was born two months premature.
"His mother had toxemia and was real sick," recalls Bobby. "We rushed Nick and Monica to the hospital and Nick was born."
Doctors didn't give the Trails a lot of hope. First, Nick only weighed 2 pounds and 1/4 of an ounce. Second, there were the complications of being born premature.
Nick spent the first two months of his life in going between hospitals in both Murfreesboro and at Vanderbilt in Nashville.
Bobby and Monica would drive hours each week from their home in Manchester, just to spend a few precious moments with their son.
"Our only contact was through the nurses by phone," remembers Bobby. "We'd drive to Nashville to spend a couple of hours. We would scrub up like doctors and put on gowns to go in (and see him). And we really didn't have any contact with him. Just being there was important."
Nick rallied and was sent home. Still, the Trails knew something wasn't right.
"When Nick was a little over a year old, they sent us back to Vanderbilt for some check ups and stuff," remembers Bobby. "We knew he hadn't progressed. He never did crawl like a normal baby, he would craw combat style like a soldier on his arms and elbows. He never did try to get up and walk. Our pediatrician sent us to Vanderbilt, and it was there that the doctor came out and we heard the words Cerebral Palsy."
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