‘It melted my heart.’ Kentucky teacher carries girl with spina bifida on hiking trip

When a paralyzed Louisville elementary school student was unsure how she could take part in a class hiking trip, a teacher at her school provided a memorable lift.

Ten-year-old Ryan Neighbors from Tully Elementary School is paralyzed from the waist down because of spina bifida , but that didn’t keep her from seeing all of the sights during a field trip to Falls of the Ohio on Friday.

The girl’s mother, Shelly King, wrote on Facebook that she was preparing for an “alternate field trip day” before a teacher at her school said, “I’m happy to tote her around on the falls all day!”

Jim Freeman, who is not one of Ryan’s teachers according to USA Today, used a back pack carrier to haul Ryan. King shared the photos on Facebook and they have been shared more than a thousand times.

“We are sooooo blessed to have an ENTIRE school that is so compassionate and empathetic and NEVER make her feel left out” King wrote on Facebook.

The man told WLKY that he teaches in the classroom next to Neighbors. He commented about how much Ryan enjoyed the experience.

“As soon as we got her strapped in, she’s like, ‘This is the part I’ve been waiting for,’” Freeman told WLKY.

Ryan had to miss the field trip last year, her mother told USA Today. King told the WLKY how “wonderful” Freeman is.

“It melted my heart,” she said. “He’s not even one of Ryan’s teachers and he was so pure-hearted that he wanted to make sure that she was included and not left out. And she got to feel like one of her peers.”

This story was originally published September 24, 2019 at 3:12 PM.