Cerebral Palsy Teen’s Letter Gets Nike to Just Do It on Shoes
“Just Do It” isn’t just a marketing slogan for footwear company Nike. And a 17-year-old Florida teen with cerebral palsy has shoes with Nike’s trademarked swoosh to prove it.
The Oregonian reports that Nike CEO Mark Parker received an emotional letter last summer from Matthew Walzer, a resident of Parkland, Fla. The teen needed special shoes that would be easy for him to wear due to his cerebral palsy.
In his letter, Walzer said that as a 2-pound, 14-ounce baby, doctors predicted he would not be able to walk. But today not only can he walk (albeit with a little difficulty), he is going to college next year, reports The Oregonian. The letter to Parker had a request from Walzer: although he was a teen who was aspiring to be self-reliant, his parents still had to tie his shoelaces.
Walzer’s letter went viral on Twitter and Facebook as #NikeLetter and also on the sneaker blog nicekicks.com. Word made its way to Parker and Nike contacted Walzer via Twitter just three days after he sent his letter.
The Oregonian reports that although Walzer was surprised to be contacted by Nike officials, he shared with them the elements that he thought might make a Nike shoe cerebral palsy-friendly.
The Oregon-based company put its can-do attitude to work on behalf of Walzer and connected to make customized shoes for him. The Nike designers remodeled the company’s Hyperdunk basketball shoe to create a customized sneaker for Walzer with a zipper in place of laces. The shoe was personalized with Walzer’s name on the zipper and has a large Velcro wrap at the ankle.
Walzer wears the shoes at school and continues to work with the Nike designers on ways to adjust the shoe design to work for someone with the rolling gait typical of those with cerebral palsy, writes The Oregonian.
If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with a birth injury like cerebral palsy that may have been caused by medical error, call Sokolove Law today to learn more about pursuing a cerebral palsy lawsuit.
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