Susanin striving to live without assistance

Fairfield High School sophomore Sam Susanin strives daily to achieve his goal, to be able to perform an action that most people take for granted: to walk.

Yet Sam suffers from cerebral palsy, a condition that affects his ability to move and to maintain his balance and posture. While there is no cure for cerebral palsy, ?the goal [of treatment] is to live without needing help, to train myself to live independently,? Sam said.

To accomplish this, Sam has been on a regimented training schedule since 2008 working with the help of his caretaker, Sofya Kuchuguridze, and professionals.

His regimen consists of going to the weight room four times per week, where he does 45-pound leg extension reps, 50-pound leg press reps and 65-pound reps on the rowing machine; water walking in the pool almost every day for 30 minutes; riding his recumbent bicycle; and undergoing physical therapy.

?I try everything to build him as an independent person,? said Kuchuguridze, who has lived with Sam since 2007. ?And it?s helping.?

When they started water-walking exercises, Sam needed two people for support in the water. Now he needs only one, and he can walk up and down the pool?s ramp with assistance. The use of a recumbent bicycle also lets him travel without the aid of a wheelchair, and Kuchuguridze said it?s an important step in his gaining independence.

What keeps Sam going is not only the motivation to walk, but the thought of someday receiving a higher education in college and becoming either a computer programmer like Kuchuguridze or an athlete like his fitness trainer, Fred Gama.

?He works hard every day,? said Gama, who has become more than just a fitness trainer to Sam, but a friend and helper.

?When I first met Sam he was just laying on a mat, and he was using a computer with his hand, but that was the full extent of his mobility,? said Gama. ?Now he can actually stand up assisted, walk short distances assisted and climb a few steps, again assisted.?

Gama explained Sam?s case of cerebral palsy was severe, but because Sam has already accomplished many things over the past few years, from walking in water to feeding himself, hope remains.

?He has improved a lot,? he said. ?I don?t know if he?ll be able to walk, but I hope that he can.?

This hope is shared by many who know him, from teachers to physical therapists and friends, as they see daily the hard work Sam puts into all areas of his life.

?I?m tremendously impressed with his attitude,? said Fairfield High School Principal Art Sathoff, who often tutors Sam in English and language arts outside of school. ?It?s the kind of attitude you want from every student in school.?

Sam was born in the United States, but lived in a home where Russian was spoken. He lived in the Ukraine for three years when he was 10-13 years old, where he learned to speak Ukrainian, before returning to the U.S. in 2007.