Anyone who has been through the momentous ‘first day of high school’ can share in the experience of nerves and excitement. The average freshman problems are as follows: finding the right class on time, having somewhere to sit at lunch, meeting new people and adjusting to the no sleep schedule from all the homework. These problems consume new students, at the time, and seem to be the only things that matter.

Hope Doyle is living proof of perseverance, determination and optimism in the school hallways. Doyle’s first year on campus wasn’t about grades or gossip- it was about staying alive. In 2015, before her freshman year began, Doyle had a left coronary artery stroke. According to Doyle, the doctors told her family that she wouldn’t make it through the night.

Miraculously, Doyle survived her injury and began a long road to recovery with rigorous hours of rehabilitation.

“It was hard at times. My freshman year that was the time I was at therapy,” Doyle said,” I had physical therapy for two years, every day, for three hours.”

From school to rehabilitation, Doyle circulated through this schedule trying to gain back as much mobility as she could. As a consequence of the stroke, Doyle had less control of her right side of the body. As her therapy continued, the school year began and her nerves started to settle in.

“Getting back to school was really hard for me, my friends had gone away,” Doyle said, “My biggest fear was talking because I didn’t have many friends.”

As she realized her new challenges, Doyle needed to have a solid support system. Her family, school staff and even her riding instructor gave the encouragement and confidence to help keep an optimistic outlook during her progress.

Her biggest supporter was her horse Solye, which she has ridden time and time again in barrel racing competitions with, and they reconnected the next day Doyle was released from the hospital. Spending time in the arena helped Doyle gain her confidence back.

Now, three years after, there are very few things Doyle isn’t able to do.

Doyle is living life like most teenagers her age: hanging out with friends, worrying about tomorrow’s history homework and, even holding down a job.

Doyle said, “People who see me for the first time see me as my braces and a disabled child and I don’t want that.”

Going out to dinner, Serrano and his wife had Doyle be their hostess at her job at Fat Willy’s.

“From the time it happened to now, she has made such huge progress physically, emotionally and mentally, and she still struggles a little bit physically but compared to two years ago,” Serrano said.

The future is still set with many challenges ahead but Doyle is prepared to take them all on.