Today is an incredibly special day in the life of one remarkable young man who has beat all the odds. Today is RC Dries’ 21st birthday.

RC suffered a severe traumatic brain injury when he was barely 12 years old and spent weeks in a coma and months in the hospital at Phoenix Children’s Hospital.

Initially he was not expected to live.

After his first MRI, at the most, his parents were told he would not be able to walk again or have to walk with assistive devices. They were told he would be partially blind. In fact, when his parents asked about RC’s prognosis compared to that of Gabby Gifford’s, of which RC’s injury was similar, they were specifically told by the neurosurgeon, “this is no Gabby Giffords.”

Gifford’s positive recovery efforts had been in the news a great deal. Worry and anxiety plagued RC’s parents and family. What would become of their son?

Even at this point they and everyone in RC’s strong and large community stayed optimistic with prayers for RC being said around the world!

Against all odds he survived half of his skull being removed to reduce swelling and a full craniotomy to reattach his skull. Even that was unsuccessful at the first attempt but eventually a second surgery was successful.

Meanwhile prayers for RC continued and full hope was restored!

With intensive physical, speech and occupational therapy from the excellent team at the hospital, RC learned to walk again and gained strength and improved his cognitive thinking and speech abilities and even attended the school at Phoenix Children’s Hospital daily.

After four months in the hospital he was released home, where all the therapies were continued, and he was home schooled within the Scottsdale Unified School District with excellent teachers.

Against all odds he attended middle school the next year and earned his spot in the National Junior Honor Society. During this time, he also became a teen volunteer at the hospital paying it forward.

He went on to successfully complete high school and after graduation worked at a bike refurbishment shop which sold bikes at deep discount and gave away bikes to needy populations.

Today he walks, hikes, rides a bike and swims, without any limitations. His speech has no impediments. His vision is not impaired and he recently passed his vision test and received a driver’s license.

Recently he received an experimental stem cell surgery and has continued to thrive, in part due to the extensive Neuro Rehabilitation program he is participating in currently through Arizona Neurorehabilitation. In this program, his goal is improved cognitive thinking, better life skills and vocational training to get a competitive job in the workplace, ultimately so he can live independently one day soon. He is well on his way.

RC keeps an open mind about his work future. Eventually he wants to do something entrepreneurial. He is thinking about doing a book in the future to aid individuals and families facing adversity, to offer hope against great odds.

This is only the beginning of RC’s adult life and the future is bright thanks to his determination through the years of excellent, cutting edge treatments he received from Barrow’s Neurological Institute at Phoenix Children’s Hospital and through the support of the public school system, family and friends, and now his current neurorehabilitation program.

The sky is the limit for this remarkable young man. Happy 21st birthday RC.

Editor’s Note: RC Dries’ birthday was June 10. His mother, Carol, is the author of this story.