on track personality trumps paralysis Jake Walther regains control of his own life

By MICHAEL ZITZ

Jake is still Jake.

That's all that really counts. The motorcycle accident that made Jake Walther a quadriplegic two years ago didn't snuff out the personal pyro-technics that made his life so interesting before.

Before a car stopped short in front of him in Memphis in June 2005, the Stafford County resident had been a Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus lighting technician, climbing 40-foot trusses, then fearlessly dangling upside down to plug in spotlights.

His unabated joy for living should be an example not just for those adjusting to life with a disability, but for all of us.

He has the same passions and dreams--bigger ambitions, in truth, than before--and sees no reason to limit himself because of a wheelchair.

And there continue to be fireworks in the 25-year-old Walther's life--a life fuller because of an indomitable spirit that attracts good things.

romantic fireworks

He's in a relationship with a young woman who's working toward her doctorate in physical therapy.

Introduced by their parents, Walther and Lake of the Woods resident Sarah Poor, 23, became friends. A year ago, when he went away for a week, he realized just how deep his feelings had grown.

"She's a gorgeous woman," he said. "I was insane about her. I couldn't live without her. When I came back, I said 'That week was way too long' and asked her to be my girlfriend, and that was it."

There was no hesitation because of Walther's disability. Quite simply, Jake was Jake, injured or not.

"She knew what she was getting into and I knew what I was getting into," he said.

And there are literal fireworks.

'KABOOM, KABOOM'

On the way back from a recent trip to see Poor at the college she's attending in Savannah, Ga., Walther stopped in South Carolina to buy the baddest fireworks he could for Fourth of July.

"Mortar shells," he said. "The biggest ones I could find."

Before the accident, one of his responsibilities with the circus had been as a pyrotechnician.

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When we first introduced Jake Walther to readers in April 2005, he was a lighting technician with Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. Two months later, he was paralyzed in a motorcycle accident. We've followed his rehabilitation, homecoming and, now, his return to being the Jake his family and friends have always loved.

Date published: 8/5/2007

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