Toby’s triumph

By Lia Bichel
IT’S not often a four-year-old participates in a marathon, let alone a four-year-old with Cerebral Palsy, but Toby Groves breaks the mould.
The Cranbourne North youngster will be surrounded by his family when he completes the last 100 metres of a five-kilometre event at the St. George Melbourne Marathon on 11 October.
Toby was born with Cerebral Palsy (CP), a physical condition which affects movement. It results from damage to the developing brain before or during birth or early life.
Doctors said there was a chance Toby would never learn to walk, but with the help of staff at Cerebral Palsy Education Centre, and a brand new walker, the determined youngster has defied odds.
Toby started attending the Glen Waverly centre at 18 months of age. For five hours a day, two days a week, he undergoes physiotherapy, speech pathology, and occupation therapy sessions.
Toby spent countless hours doing activities to strengthen his core muscles until he could learn to sit unaided and walk. In January, Toby received a walker, which he will use to complete the marathon in an effort to help raise funds for the centre and raise awareness of CP.
“Toby loves the walker, it has given him a lot more independence,” his mother Paula said.
“For most kids, learning to walk is something you would expect them to do, but we weren’t guaranteed that opportunity with Toby. The walker provided him with an opportunity to play with other kids, and lets him feel more comfortable interacting with them.”
Ms Groves said Toby would be in a pusher for most of the event, but would complete the last stretch surrounded by his parents, seven-year-old brother Royce, and grandparents.
“He knows it’s coming up, and that his grandparents will be visiting for it,” she said. “He’s pretty excited about it.”
CP is the most common form of physical disability in childhood. It is estimated that a child is born with CP every 18 hours. To donate funds towards Grove’s family marathon event visit www.everydayhero. com.au/across_the_line_in_09 and donate to Groves Family or Toby Groves.