Leader and Friend

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Nick VanderWall was 12 years old when he lost his sight. A weekend with his father, a family friend and the family dog, Maggie, turned out to be almost fatal after VanderWall was shot accidentally while bird hunting.

The bullet left more than 140 BBs in his body above his chest — six in his brain, one on the lining of his lung and one on the lining of his heart — and nearly paralyzed the entire right side of his body.

“The doctors are amazed that I didn’t get any cognitive disabilities from it,” he said. “I shouldn’t have survived.”

But even after the accident, VanderWall remains an ardent hunter and said he doesn’t want to let his disability hold him back.

“I refuse to let it define me,” he said. “I don’t let anything hold me back.”

With his guide dog, Toby, by his side, VanderWall, a communication junior, is able to navigate campus and the city on his own.

“If I didn’t have (Toby), I wouldn’t know where I was down here. He gives me the kind of faith that you need,” he said.

VanderWall was paired with Toby through Leader Dogs for the Blind when he transferred to MSU this past fall. 

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