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SPRINGVILLE — Coined as “The Happiest Place on Earth,” Disneyland is a magical place for many families.
And for one Utah family, it is a place of miracles.
When 6-year-old Kyler Pope was a baby, doctors told his parents he would likely never walk.
But prior to his first trip to Disneyland, Kyler, who has cerebral palsy, spontaneously told his mother, Stephanie, “I’m going to take my first step for Mickey Mouse.”
Life has never come easy for Kyler as far as his health is concerned.
“We received Kyler at 9 months old as a foster son and ended up adopting him within about a year,” Stephanie Pope said. “I could see there was something wrong developmentally, so we went to Primary Children’s Hospital to have him observed.”
Over the course of a couple of years, the Pope family learned Kyler had a form of autism in addition to cerebral palsy. Kyler's days filled with physical therapy, occupational therapy and vision therapy.
Every day for the two years prior to meeting Mickey Mouse for the first time, Kyler would practice walking with a walker, but he wasn’t able to walk without assistance.
When the Popes arrived at Disneyland and Kyler saw Mickey Mouse, he took the first unassisted step of his life.
“We were in disbelief, because he’d just fall before,” Stephanie Pope said. “We just couldn’t see that happening.”
After returning home from Disneyland, Kyler asked his mom when they would be able to go back for a second trip.
“I thought, ‘OK, we have to buy ourselves some time to save up for another trip,’ so I told him we could go back when he could take 10 steps to Mickey Mouse, thinking that would buy us a couple of years,” Stephanie Pope said.
But Kyler was determined. Days after coming home from their vacation, Kyler took 10 steps in one night.
“He’s such a determined, optimistic little boy, and everyone was so amazed to be there and to behold a miracle,” Stephanie Pope said.
Stephanie wasn’t about to break a promise to her son, so she hosted a garage sale and raised $2,500, almost the exact cost of an annual Disneyland pass for her family.
The Popes were able to return to Disneyland five times in 2014, and each time, Mickey Mouse remembered Kyler.
...When we realize we can do hard things and we can witness miracles in our life, it brings hope to our lives and fills our lives with joy and light.
–Stephanie Pope
“Disneyland was so good to us,” Stephanie Pope said. “They knew who we were and made sure we were treated really well. Kyler even got to meet the president and CEO of Disneyland.”
During one trip, Mickey Mouse arranged an all-expense, special scavenger hunt with the Popes.
“The whole week the staff gave us a magical treatment,” Stephanie Pope said. “Disneyland is one of those places on this earth where these things can happen.”
Since Kyler’s first trip to Disneyland, he has experienced a great deal of healing.
He now walks around his house without a walker and has been transferred from his special needs class to a mainstream first grade class.
He also has a goal to run a marathon.
Soon, Kyler is hoping to launch a website with a goal to share his story, which is depicted in a video, with 1 million people. He also encourages others to share their story with him, hoping to collect at least 1,000 stories.
"People are lacking hope on this earth when they are in difficult circumstances," Stephanie Pope said. "But when we realize we can do hard things and we can witness miracles in our life, it brings hope to our lives and fills our lives with joy and light."
