LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Graduation is a milestone, but for one Las Vegas teenager, the journey to walking across the stage was a battle.
From fighting leukemia to now managing epilepsy, Jacob Anderson and his family have overcome the odds.
Anderson is a huge Vegas Golden Knights fan with a heart of gold and is celebrating being a Spring Valley High School graduate. The 18-year-old is showing what resilience looks like.
Jacob owned the graduation stage with his mother Kendra Briggs, cheering him on.
“He’s my only [son],” she shared with 8 News Now, adding that she once wondered if this moment was possible. “I took the pictures and he goes, ‘Mom, I’m a professor.’”
Anderson has pushed past every barrier. His journey is a powerful one. Briggs told 8 News Now that he was diagnosed with autism at a young age and was non-verbal until he was 7 years old.
“And then he ended up getting leukemia at 7,” Briggs said. “He wasn’t eating and he ended up having constant bloody noses and then he started throwing up blood.”
She said he was cared for at Summerlin Hospital, where he fought the cancer for months.
“So, he ended up having to get many transfusions,” she added.
He thankfully beat it. However, when he turned 13 years old, Briggs said he faced another challenge: a diagnosis of epilepsy.
“All of a sudden he came in my room, and he literally fell backwards and started seizing,” she explained. “That was scary.”
It’s a scary road, but it is paved with hope. Briggs advocates for her son, and she fights for every chance he gets to shine.
“I really want other parents who have younger children to understand, it is possible and they can graduate,” she said.
She said she wants to share the message with other autism families that it is all about taking it one day at a time. Briggs said it’s all about building a community.
“I’m learning every day, still learning to this day,” she shared.
Every day and step is a big win.
“I’m happy!” Jacob told 8 News Now.
Jacob loves airplanes and will continue his growth through programs focused on essential life and job skills.
Briggs said that even though he graduated, he still gets to go to Spring Valley for another four years.