Spencer West is a motivational and inspiring person who I will look up to for the rest of my life. He was born with a genetic disease which caused his legs not to work, so at the age of three, he had them amputated. Spencer hated the artificial legs they tried to get him to use, so his parents decided that he would have to learn to get around on his hands. He was always optimistic;  instead of thinking that losing his legs would be a bad thing, he thought of it as an opportunity so he could get around more easily.

Growing up, Spencer had many amazing achievements for a boy with no legs. He even joined the cheerleading squad and was the star of the show! However, he was sometimes a victim of bullying. Now, Spencer West speaks at public events to inspire youth to follow their dreams and to not give up.

In 2012 Spencer achieved his greatest accomplishment -HE CLIMBED MOUNT KILIMANJARO!

On his hands and in his wheelchair in June 2012 he climbed the tallest mountain in Africa with the help of his two best friends to raise money for clean water. They climbed for seven days straight and through their journey they showed perseverance, courage, and compassion. Altitude sickness is common for mountain climbers and luckily Spencer did not get the illness. Unfortunately, both of his friends were hit with the illness hard. At the time when his friends were feeling horrible Spencer considered going back but they continued on and finally they reached the top. At the end, he had raised half a million dollars for clean water.

Here is a video of Spencer West speaking at a We Day in Vancouver.

Spencer West is my hero and forever will be.

As Spencer West often says in his speeches, “Keep Climbing.”

Thank you for joining me on my journey to change the world!

-Diviya