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'I can do it!': The heartwarming moment a blind four-year-old boy steps off the kerb by himself for the first time
By
Hugo Gye
PUBLISHED:
16:12 GMT, 13 March 2013
|
UPDATED:
18:49 GMT, 13 March 2013
This heartwarming video shows the amazing moment a blind four-year-old navigates a kerb on his own for the first time.
Gavin Robert Stevens suffers from Leber's congenital amaurosis, which has rendered him almost totally sightless.
But he has not let his devastating condition stop him from exploring the world, and his parents caught him on camera walking down a step without any help.
Scroll down to watch the video
Tentative: Four-year-old Gavin prepares to step off the kerb using his stick as his proud family cheer him on
Heartwarming moment blind boy takes his first step off the curb…
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The clip posted on YouTube shows the youngster tentatively approaching the kerb and scanning the landscape with his white stick.
His mother tells him to 'find the kerb', and Gavin starts jabbing at it with the stick.
Exclaiming, 'I can do it!', the boy then bravely steps into the road as his relatives cheer.
Four months after Gavin was born he was diagnosed with LCA, a rare inherited eye disease which usually renders its sufferers almost totally blind.
Getting closer: Gavin probes the territory with his trusty stick before he is ready to take the plunge
Brave: The hardy youngster, who is almost totally blind, steps off the kerb without help from his parents
There is currently no known cure for the boy's condition, though scientists are researching the disease in the hope of finding a way to restore some sight to those affected by it.
Gavin's parents, from California, shared the video of him walking in order to show off his impressive progress and bring hope to the families of other children suffering from LCA.
'We've been working on steps and shifting his feet,' his mother Jennifer told the Huffington Post. 'To someone who is blind, that needs to be taught.'
Success! The video filmed by his mother shows how he is able to wander around all by himself
Despite the difficulties he has with walking, he enjoys the challenge, she said.
'He gets very happy when he does stuff independently for the first time,' she added. 'It's such a joy to him.'
For more information on Gavin or to donate click here