Continuing through learning about Charlie’s story it is about the discipline he had instilled in his life from a young age. Charlie always looked up to his father who had a foundation of a positive attitude no matter what. He faced every circumstance not as barriers but as challenges to overcome. They were always focused on family and sport. Lucy fit right into this foundation and their background supported them and encouraged them to do the same with facing ALS. She became his solid rock to encourage Charlie to keep pushing forward.

They learned how to enjoy the beauty around them and to appreciate the blessings they have. The Wedemeyer’s realized fast they can not stop living or celebrating life. They learned how to keep laughing. With that attitude, they faced ALS and started to try everything no matter what it took. Charlie quickly figured out that life seemed worth living for and continued to teach and coach football. He focused on something other than his illness to keep pushing forward. Perspective matters, the words and thoughts you have create the world around you.

The main challenge Charlie faced as he continued to get worse was not the adjustment but he resented how everything affected the lives of the people around him. It was more of an embarrassment of needing and having to ask for help. This especially was hard because he used to rely on and got reactions from what he physically was able to do through football.

With the regression of his health, Lucy had to step forward. Charlie could no longer teach but continued to coach despite the challenges. The assistant coaches were on board with it and Lucy joined the team as well. She would attend practices, learned the plays, and help Charlie communicate and move around the field. Others saw this as a burden that she had to take on but again her perspective pushed through. She saw this as an opportunity to learn more about his world and share in the passion of football with him in a whole new way, something that would have never of happened if it was not for ALS. The coaching staff and players respected him and showed their affection year after year by keeping him a part of the team. He was their head coach, no questions asked.

Facing the challenges and pushing through led to them eventually going public and being featured on a TV. At first, they were hesitant on moving forward and opening the door to their life to the public but figured it would be worth it. The teacher heart in him saw the opportunity to help at least one person which made it all worth wild. They saw the positive reaction and was overwhelmed but what their story meant to others. This gave them a new purpose of helping others through challenging situations. They had to daily push themselves to get more out of life, to step outside of their comfort zone. They became apart of others lives.