Bayport-Blue Point prom queen Brooke Wilber dances through pain
Bayport-Blue Point High School junior Brooke Wilber, 17, was crowned homecoming queen during the junior prom at Lombardi's on the Sound in Port Jefferson on Friday, May 30, 2014. Credit: Ursula Moore
In April 2013, Brooke Wilber was diagnosed with complex regional pain syndrome, a chronic pain condition she developed shortly after a misstep getting off a ride at an amusement park.
The ailment started in her left foot, spread to the left side of her body and eventually affected both legs. She was in such bad shape that for a couple of months last summer, the 17-year-old used a wheelchair.
She's walking again now, although she deals with pain she describes as “24/7,” a part of the incurable condition that requires her to regularly attend therapy sessions.
But Wilber refused to let it stop her from dancing the night away at the Bayport-Blue Point High School junior prom at Lombardi’s on the Sound in Port Jefferson Friday.
And her fellow students didn’t ignore her courage, crowning her prom queen.
Wilber admitted that the title was important to her.
“It makes me feel like I have people supporting me every step of the way,” said Wilber.
While songs like Demi Lovato’s “Neon Lights” played in the background, Wilber danced with her friends.
“I can dance and all that, but I must take breaks,” she said.
One friend, 16-year-old junior Rachael Lattera, summed it up: “Brooke is a warrior.”
Out East with Doug Geed: Wine harvests, a fish market, baked treats and poinsettias NewsdayTV's Doug Geed visits two wineries and a fish market, and then it's time for holiday cheer, with a visit to a bakery and poinsettia greenhouses.
Out East with Doug Geed: Wine harvests, a fish market, baked treats and poinsettias NewsdayTV's Doug Geed visits two wineries and a fish market, and then it's time for holiday cheer, with a visit to a bakery and poinsettia greenhouses.
