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When Luke Spinato took his first steps across the graduation stage at Currituck County High School on June 5, 2025, the crowd erupted into cheers. For many seniors, walking the stage is a rite of passage. For Luke, it was the culmination of an extraordinary journey—a goal achieved not only through grit and determination, but also with the help of a robotic exoskeleton, a devoted support team, and unwavering family love.

 

Last summer, Luke’s life changed in an instant. On July 4, 2024, the then 17-year-old was celebrating Independence Day with friends and family, something he had done many times before. But a routine dive off a dock turned tragic.

According to a GoFundMe set up by family friends, “He dove off the dock the way he always did, but this time, this dive, this shift of fate, Luke hit the bottom in a way that broke his neck.” Paralyzed from the chest down, Luke floated motionless in the water. His friends, initially thinking he was joking, quickly realized the truth. “Luke tells us that he thought he had died and that if this was death, it sucked. But then he realized he was holding his breath and couldn’t move.”

In the months that followed, Luke and his family entered a new world, one marked by uncertainty, intense rehabilitation, and difficult choices. He was transferred to Sheltering Arms Institute in Richmond, Virginia, where he spent roughly 70 days in inpatient rehabilitation, working with occupational therapist Mary Baker.

“We had to get him used to being up and out of the bed after being in the hospital,” Baker explained. “We got him a power chair to use initially … he slowly got stronger and over time progressed to a manual chair. He could push himself by the time he left, which was an incredible feat.”

Baker noted how even though Luke’s left arm was significantly weaker than his right, he never backed down from a challenge. “There wasn’t anything that I would ask him to do that he would hesitate on … Even if I were to have said, ‘Okay, let’s stand on your head today,’ he would have been willing to do it.”

Baker described spinal injuries as “unique because you lose everything in the blink of an eye.” But with Luke, she saw someone constantly pushing the limits of what was possible. “Even when he didn’t feel well, he would still power through,” she said. “I knew he was going to work hard every day.”

After leaving inpatient rehab, Luke began working with Alexander Lavallis, an exercise physiologist at Sheltering Arms’ NeuroFit program. Together, they began exploring the use of a robotic exoskeleton, a device that helps individuals with spinal cord injuries walk.

“I started working with Luke around October of last year,” Lavallis said. “He was on an intensive schedule, coming in for one to two hours pretty much every other day to work on the exo, emulation, and strength training.” Sessions often included walking in the exoskeleton for up to 1,200 steps at a time.

Lavallis noted that early sessions focused heavily on Luke’s upright tolerance—a key hurdle for many spinal cord patients due to blood pressure regulation issues. “With being in a wheelchair, you don’t have a lot of opportunity to be on your feet … The exoskeleton provides a positive emotional response that has been very beneficial.”

In the spring of 2025, the idea to use the exoskeleton at graduation was born. “The idea came up about a month and a half ago,” said Lavallis. “His parents had approached me with the idea.” He shared that using an exoskeleton to walk the stage at graduation had been done in the past, but not by an exercise physiologist. After several meetings, careful planning and repeated rehearsals, the plan was greenlit.

Luke was all in. “Graduation day went great, it was absolutely amazing,” he said. “It was unlike anything I had ever experienced or felt before in my life. It was so loud that it was blurry up on the stage.”

The moment was years in the making and powered by Luke’s relentless will. “I knew I was going to graduate,” he said, “but it was hard thinking about not being able to walk the stage. So, I made that one of my goals.”

Even before graduation, Luke’s post-accident recovery included not only therapy at Sheltering Arms, but also sessions at Old Dominion University, home-based physical therapy, Emsculpt treatments using electromagnetic waves, hyperbaric oxygen therapy, and even a trip to Colombia for stem cell injections.

“Since the first round of stem cells, my core had started activating a lot more,” he said. “My triceps have gotten stronger as well.”

Through it all, his parents Lori and Paul Spinato have been by his side, encouraging, researching and fighting for every possible opportunity for their son.

“For me, I couldn’t be more proud of this kid for continuing to make things happen even though he’s been through something that is unimaginable,” said Lori. “He never says no, never says not today, never says I’ll do it later.”

She recalled how, early on, Luke made the choice to leave the hospital in a manual wheelchair, not a power chair, despite limited arm strength. “He doesn’t ever stop trying,” she said. “We don’t regret the decision to go to Sheltering Arms. We have made really good relationships that we still connect with today.”

His father, Paul, shared similar pride and awe. “I was super proud of Luke and still am. He’s an inspiration. He set a goal to walk at graduation and he did it,” he said. “It was crazy. Everybody was standing up and clapping and it was so loud.”

Paul also recalled the wave of support the family received after the accident. “The community came together because Luke is such a great individual. From the phone calls and support to donations … we really appreciate everyone who had helped and shown up for Luke.”

As for what’s next, Luke is aiming high.

“The next step is being fully recovered, or at least as recovered as I can be,” he said. “I feel like the thing I’ve been most waiting for is more hand movement … That’s what I’m working on currently.”

For Lavallis, who helped Luke cross the stage on his graduation day, he has nothing but optimism about Luke’s future. “Luke is one of those people who doesn’t let his location determine his destination. It doesn’t matter what the mode of transportation it is, as long as he gets there,” he said. “It’s a ‘we’ thing—we’re in this together—and that’s one of the most beautiful things about him.”

To keep up with Luke’s journey and support him on his road to recovery, go to bit.ly/4l8QPds. To learn more about Sheltering Arms, go to ShelteringArms.com.

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