Nick Malafronte is rarely left speechless, but when his university delivered a diploma to the paralyzed lifeguard on Tuesday in a surprising way, he was at a loss for words.
It has not always been an easy road for the 26-year-old, who was initially a student at Westfield State University in Massachusetts. His college plans were thrown into disarray when a diving accident left him paralyzed in 2011, The Patriot Ledger noted.
Malafronte was lifeguarding at Island Grove, a park in Abington, when he hit his head and fell unconscious into the pool, WCVB said.
He survived the ordeal but would never be able to use his legs again. Doctors also said he would not be able to use his arms but they were not aware of just how determined Malafronte could be.
He spent hours each day in grueling rehab sessions working to regain the use of his arms, but his injury and therapy schedule made it impossible for him to continue his studies at Westfield State University, so he dropped out.
Five years later he decided to finish his degree, but online via Southern New Hampshire University, Inside Edition said.
He finished his studies last month but his family saw the effort and grit it took for him to get there and wanted to do something special to honor his hard work.
They called SNHU to see if it would be possible to haul out its bus and drive down to deliver Nick Malafronte's diploma in person. Although the bus had been retired, school officials decided to bring it out for one last trip.
Malafronte was at the Abington Depot, getting some food and drinks with his friends, when the bus rolled into town, The Patriot Ledger noted.
As it pulled over, a team of university representatives hopped out and greeted Malafronte with his diploma, a moment that was captured on film and uploaded to the university's Facebook page.
"I am not very speechless very often. I am very overwhelmed right now," he said, according to Inside Edition. "I shouldn't get this much praise for graduating, but I appreciate it and I love it."
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