Student inspires with story of overcoming disability

In a recent speech at Heilongjiang Library, Li Hongze touched the audience with her story.

In spite of physical and linguistic disadvantages caused by cerebral palsy, the 18-year-old girl has never given up her studies. She was admitted to Daqing Normal University in Northeast China's Heilongjiang province in September.

Li, a freshman majoring in business administration, was born with cerebral palsy in Qiqihar city, Heilongjiang province.

"She was not able to walk independently at the age of three," her father Li Wu said. "Her mother and I decided to give her physical training with the help of doctors."

"After hundreds of Chinese traditional massages, she could stand up independently," he said. "In order to enhance her training, my wife and I began to help her at home."

Every day, the couple brought their little girl to climb stairs in their apartment building.

"We spent two hours in the six-floor building helping her exercise," he said. "At the beginning, she could finish by crawling, but we never gave up, even though we also felt pain hearing her loud cry."

With the help of her family, Li Hongze was finally able to walk before attending primary school.

Li also showed great interest in reading at an early age.

"When she was a little girl, we had to keep her at home during the long winter to prevent her from falling ill," he said. "At that time, we found she immersed herself reading various books."

She remained top in her class during the three years of senior high school and entered the university in September.

"I want to thank my parents who give me great support and love," Li Hongze said. "Furthermore, we have also received lots of help from society, which has helped me live optimistically and confidently."