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There is strength in numbers. About 800 kids raced to help children battling cancer on Saturday. The Miracle Kids Triathlon took place at Lake Ann Park in Chanhassen. Jordan Dahlke (pictured), 18, has shown even one person can have tremendous power, disability or not. Jordan has cerebral palsy and walks with crutches.
"At first it was just a thing to get into shape, you know, because I was just sitting at home and doing nothing," said the 18-year-old.
This is Jordan's sixth and last Miracle Kids triathlon. During that time, he's raised more than $85,000.
The money helps families dealing with cancer pay the bills and have some fun. It funded a weekend getaway for 2-year-old Austin Winkler and his family. His mom Tracy is thankful for Jordan's contribution.
"It's a miracle, it's awesome," said Tracy.
Jordan doesn't just work at fundraising. He trains rigorously by walking a mile on his crutches and biking five or six miles everyday. Even reconstructive surgery on his legs and hips two years ago didn't keep him from racing.
"He was in a lot of pain during that race, but he wanted to do it and he did it," said Brian Dahlke, Jordan's dad.
Motivating Jordan every step of the way is remembering who he's helping.
"They have a disease that can take their life at any moment. I've just got these couple of challenges and I'm not even close," said Jordan.
Jordan only needs a few modifications when he races. He starts before the rest of the crowd and uses an adaptive bicycle. Otherwise, he does everything the other kids do during the race.
His family says the competitions have helped Jordan mature and get in better physical condition.
"This has only been good for him," said his dad.
Also, it's good for anyone who feels inspired by Jordan's example.
"No matter what challenges you have, you can do whatever you want," he said.
Jordan's next challenge will be college in the fall.
Though he'll be too old to race next year, he will stay involved with the Miracle Kids triathlon as a volunteer.
Beth Haller, Ph.D., is Co-Director of the Global Alliance for Disability in Media and Entertainment (www.gadim.org). A former print journalist, she is a member of the Advisory Board for the National Center on Disability and Journalism (https://ncdj.org/). Haller is Professor Emerita in the Department of Mass Communication at Towson University in Maryland, USA. Haller is co-editor of the 2020 "Routledge Companion to Disability and Media" (with Gerard Goggin of University of Sydney & Katie Ellis of Curtin University, Australia). She is author of "Representing Disability in an Ableist World: Essays on Mass Media" (Advocado Press, 2010) and the author/editor of Byline of Hope: Collected Newspaper and Magazine Writing of Helen Keller (Advocado Press, 2015). She has been researching disability representation in mass media for 30+ years. She is adjunct faculty in the Disability Studies programs at the City University of New York (CUNY) and the University of Texas-Arlington.
From WCCO-TV in Minnesota:
