Chris Norton speaks to students at Howard-Winneshiek

(Left to right): 8th grade Cresco students Cameron Ollendick, Rachel Steffen, Laken Lienhard, Madison Brace and Kailyn Erickson with Chris Norton (front)

(Our thanks to Keri Schatz of Cresco for her work on this story)

Public speaking has not always been Chris Norton's greatest strength.  In fact, he confesses, the worst grade he ever received was in public speaking.

But Norton's life took an unexpected turn when he suffered a spinal injury while playing on the Luther College football team.  Doctors told him he would never walk--but he proved them wrong when he walked across the stage at Luther's Commencement.  

Norton told Howard-Winneshiek students, "We all possess what I call 'The Power to Stand.' This power to stand is our ability to respond to whatever obstacles are in our way, because we all have obstacles – some big, some small – but regardless, they're obstacles and they're challenging and difficult for you," he said. "They may be academics, relationships with your friends, parents, or siblings. It could be your health. It could be wanting to run faster in track, or maybe you want to be better at baseball or softball, but regardless, we all have to work on these things. We all have to give it our best to achieve what we aspire to achieve."

Norton estimates that he has spoken at more than 50 schools in the last year, visiting as many as 10-14 in a one-week time frame.  "I love the after-part, when I get to talk to the audience about the message, because people seem to connect to my story in different ways. I love hearing other people's stories and how they were able to connect with me, and how I can help them with whatever they're going through," he said. "That's really meaningful to me."