Oscar’s story
“It’s not just about being given opportunities – it’s about being celebrated for the way he is.”
Nine-year-old Oscar is starting grade five. He loves sports – from hockey to soccer, baseball and basketball; from watching in the stands to scoring the goals. Oscar also has cerebral palsy. Born early at 25 weeks’ gestation, Oscar spent four months in hospital, undergoing multiple brain surgeries. These days Oscar uses a wheelchair to get around.
Oscar has already faced more challenges than most kids his age. And as he gets older, he’s starting to recognize these barriers more and more. “Sometimes he feels like he is a burden,” says Jessica Pelat, Oscar’s mom. “There are a lot of instances when we’re out, traveling, and it’s challenging. He’s already pointing out where there’s no ramps on curbs, he understands when it’s hard for me to lift him.”
World Cerebral Palsy Day
Cerebral palsy is the most common form of lifelong physical disability. It can affect a person’s ability to walk, move, or communicate, and is caused by an injury to the developing brain. Every story is different, and everyone’s experience with cerebral palsy is unique.
World Cerebral Palsy Day is a global movement for and by the 50 million people living with cerebral palsy, their families and supporters. Celebrated on October 6th, the cerebral palsy community not only raise awareness, but also celebrate their unique experiences and contributions to our world.
When Oscar met Rick: A Day on the Water
Like most kids, Oscar also has hopes, dreams – and people he looks up to. Oscar has a poster of Rick Hansen up in his room, calls him ‘Rick Handsome’, and thinks he’s a hero, especially because Rick is “not one of those stand-up men”. Like Rick, Oscar uses a wheelchair. Like Rick, Oscar doesn’t let that stop him from doing anything.
So, when Oscar was invited to go on the accessible Everyone Everywhere boat as part of the Rick Hansen Foundation (RHF)’s Accessible Outdoors Program, Oscar and his family were thrilled.
“It was something designed specifically for people like him,” Jessica said. “He could just exist as he is.”
Oscar and his brother Hugo (12) were joined by their mom Jessica and her partner Ryan on the boat in July 2026, alongside Rick Hansen himself. Together they set out for an afternoon adventure, catching, tagging, tracking, and releasing sturgeon.
“Even the littlest things – it was so easy.” Jessica said. “I didn’t have to take Oscar out of his chair at all.” On the boat, Oscar didn’t need to ask for help to do anything. “He felt like a rockstar,” says his mom. “He said ‘I want to live on this boat!’”
More than the physical modifications of the boat, Oscar loved spending time with his hero. “Just watching Rick exist and be completely normal and comfortable,” Jessica said, “he understood that just because you’re in a wheelchair, it’s not your whole identity.”
Nature for All
The Everyone Everywhere vessel was a revelation for the whole family. “It’s eye-opening to what’s possible, rather than settling for inaccessibility,” Jessica said. “There are so many opportunities to make our province or our country or the world so much more comfortable for everybody.”
“Our whole lives with Oscar, we’ve just been trying to make him feel like he can do whatever he wants to do, to make him feel like a kid.”
RHF believes that everyone of all abilities should have access to the outdoors. After experiencing the impact of a day on the water, Oscar’s mom Jessica agrees.
It’s so important for everyone, she says, “to never have the thought of ‘I wonder what that looks like, what that feels like’. To be able to swim in oceans, climb mountains – and never feel like a burden while doing that.”
This World Cerebral Palsy Day, we celebrate the unique stories of tens of millions of people who, like Oscar, are vital parts of our communities and world. Learn more about World Cerebral Palsy Day, find resources, and hear other voices of people with lived experience here.
