Dad overcomes to dance with his girls
“Two years ago, I took my daughters to the Daddy and Me Dance. I rented this big Mercedes limousine. I went all out for my girls, and they had a blast. I couldn’t do it last year because I was in a hospital bed. I was sad about it because I knew how much they loved going. But they understood. So this year I told my mom, ‘I’m going to do my best to get on my feet and take them to that dance.’ I was very determined. I would get on my exercise bike and pedal 15 to 25 miles at a time. I mean, I put in some hard work to get back on my feet.
“The weekend before the dance, I asked my sister to take me outside. I wanted to see how much I could walk. Using my walker, I was able to go from the apartment all the way to the dumpster and back. Then they took me to Roseland Park, and I walked half of the full lap there. I did not give up. I was working very hard to stand, so I could surprise my daughters.
“On the day of the dance I told them, ‘Y’all help me stand up,’ and I walked into that dance hall. They were surprised. I did not want to sit. I had the walker in front of me and moved around with them. Then our song came on, ‘Dancing With Cinderella.’ It’s a very pretty song that I picked for my oldest daughter’s quinceañera. She loved it. So when that song came on, I told her, ‘Come here. Let’s dance.’ She was like, ‘But Dad, you can’t stand.’ I said, ‘Let’s dance.’ I put the walker to the side, grabbed ahold of her, and we were dancing. She started crying and was like, ‘I can’t believe it, Dad. You’re actually dancing.’ It was very emotional. We danced, and then another song came on, and I danced with my younger daughters. It was hard, and I was scared that I would fall and make a scene. But it all worked out. We had a great time.
“I worked very hard for that moment. With everything that me and my family have gone through for more than a year, it meant the world to me and to them.”
— Jaime Aceves
Jaime continues recovering from Guillain-Barré syndrome, a rare neurological disorder in which the body’s immune system attacks part of the peripheral nervous system. After regaining the use of his legs and arms, he is gradually building up strength and mobility.
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