By Suzanne Rhodes
Official Kids Mag
Do you like to run and feel the
joy as your feet seem to fly over
the ground? Running is Paul Scott's
passion, and he's got the ribbons
to prove it. Paul is a ninth grader at
West Fork High School where he's a
member of the cross-country team.
He's won awards and been part of
winning teams. He and his teammates
face many obstacles on cross country
courses, like hills and trees and rocks.
But for this boy, whose parents
adopted him and his three siblings
from China, the obstacles are far
more challenging.
Paul is blind.
So how can Paul run if he can't
see? The answer is a boy named
Rebel Hays. Rebel, a fourth grader
at Holcomb Elementary School in
Fayetteville, is Paul's fulltime guide
runner. A guide runner helps blind
or visually impaired runners by going
ahead of them during practices and
cross-country meets, and connects to
them with a rope about two feet long.
The guide calls out to the runner
letting him know what's ahead—
maybe a turn, a dip, a hill. If the
runner didn't have a guide, he could
collide with someone or an object
like a rock. The guide has to wear a
bright-colored shirt. Rebel had a shirt
made. It's bright yellow and labeled
"Guide Runner."
Rebel, who's been running since he
was five and has won a few fun runs,
started helping Paul in 2018 when he
was in the second grade. "I'm just
amazed by his willingness to help
Paul," said West Fork Coach Tiffany
Surber. "He's a strong runner. He has
a servant's heart, is a hard worker
is the word for this
cross-country duo
Incredible
(photos
courtesy
louann Hays
and
nhi Blansett)
10 • January 2021 • www.officialKidsMag.com
