A little boy battling cancer was granted a heartwarming gift this week when he was able to “graduate” eight grades in a single day.
Officials at Central Elementary in Fairfield, Ohio, helped 6-year-old Walter Herbert — who is nicknamed “Superbubz” — recognize his quest to experience classroom time in all 12 grades, as he battles Stage 4 neuroblastoma, the Statesman reported.
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“He really just loves coming to school. He loves riding the bus and eating lunch at school,” Principal Karrie Gallo of Central Elementary told the outlet. “Walter has so much energy and so much life and he is so humble about all the things he has gotten to experience over the last couple of weeks.”
So, on Thursday, Walter spent the morning breezing through grades two through five, then he went to Creekside Middle School to experience grades six through eight.
At the end of the 20-minute interval he spent in each class, the little boy was presented with a certificate of grade-level completion.
Walter will finish off the rest of the grades on Friday when he takes a trip to the local Freshman School and then the high school.
So far, teachers have adapted each lesson so that he can take part in group discussions. Gallo told local media that the district just wanted to give Walter and his family an opportunity for something uplifting in the midst of tragedy.
“My inspiration was really for his mom to give her that graduation,” Gallo said, before breaking down in tears. “It always takes moments like this to make you realize the things that could happen and that life isn’t guaranteed.”
Superbubz loves the new building! pic.twitter.com/0ai5qMxqGY
— Mrs. Gallo and Mrs. Cox (@fcsdcentral) August 23, 2017
Walter will also attend a graduation ceremony with friends and family on Friday evening — and will even wear a small cap and gown to celebrate, according to the Statesman.
“This is just kind of our way of paying forward a little bit,” Gallo said, adding that she’d want someone to do the same for her and her child if she were in the same position.