Charlie Cook showed that barriers were meant to be broken on Friday night when the Columbus Blue Jackets took on the Detroit Red Wings.
Charlie made a massive impact not only on the team itself but on the crowd. In front of a sell-out bunch in Nationwide Arena, the Blue Jackets shut out the Red Wings. Charlie took the ice next to Foligno for warm-ups and brought the house down.
It was a moment that never felt possible. Cook had a stroke in utero and his family was told that he had a low probability for survival.
"We were told by the doctors that he probably wouldn’t be able to walk on his own or do anything else,” Charlie's mom, Valerie, said.
Not only was it inspiring to see Charlie take the ice, but to see the reactions of everyone involved including that of his coach Ben Kyler who was instrumental in making sure that Charlie made the ice. Coach Kyler is in charge of the Columbus Special Hockey team.
“He brings a smile to everybody’s face. He’s excited about a lot of things," said Coach Kyler. "He works very hard at it because he’s had to overcome a lot to get to where he is.”
We can all take a note from Charlie and realize that anything is possible. Charlie laid that groundwork and it would be great for us to take that with us every day.
