RIPON (NBC 26) — Ella Weiske donned eye-catching silver shoes for a very special day on Saturday.
"Oh my gosh, we had to get some fancy shoes for like the day. I mean, we couldn't just go in the, you know, Reeboks; we have to like, pick it up a notch,” said Ella's mom, Deb. “We're so excited. So excited.”
High school graduation is a big deal for anyone able to do it, but Ella's walk across the stage is extra special.
Ella was born at 26 weeks with cerebral palsy and congenital quadriplegia.
Until she got a special machine called a "Trexo" in January, Ella couldn't walk.
“It's been kind of crazy because I've only really seen Ella in her wheelchair. And when she got out for the first time, you could see the smile on her face, and it just brightened up the day and it just so it was like, 'Oh my gosh, she just slayed,'” said Ella's friend, Jenna Konrad.
“I am very proud of her. She's been through so much, and just to see her, like, walk across the stage and just — her smile brights up everywhere,” Jenna said.
Jenna and Ella are friends, but they also share a graduating class. That means that after a lot of hard work, they both received their diplomas together.
In fact, Ella's big day comes alongside the celebrations of peers she's known since she was three years old.
“She had to fight through her entire academic year to get those good grades, to work hard. And make sure that, you know, we got here today, and she did it," said Deb. "So yeah, it's, it's awesome.”
When Ella's time came to take the stage, the gym erupted in cheers, and Ella was overcome with emotion to get to use her legs for such an important moment, after months of training for it.
"I think our next adventure is going to be walking downtown," Deb said. "Check out the stores and check out the shops, because we've never done that."
