This Pasco High student is in and out of hospitals. It won’t stop him from getting his diploma

Jaden Robles may need to make small steps when he picks up his Pasco High diploma next weekend, but he is determined to make the walk.

“A lot of people said I wasn’t going to be able to graduate on time. I always thought people who say you can’t do something are more scared that you will do it,” Robles told the Herald.

He’s spending 12-hour days in front of a computer to make up the course work he missed during his latest lung infection.

The Pasco High student was just 2 months old when his parents noticed he wheezed a lot.

At first, doctors dismissed it, but when one physician looked harder medical professionals discovered the cause — cystic fibrosis.

A protein in Robles’ body doesn’t help move chloride to the surface of his cells. Without it there to attract water, the mucus in various organs becomes thick and sticky.

This becomes a big concern in his lungs where that mucus traps germs, causing infections, inflammation, respiratory failure and other complications.

Some days are good, others not

In a lot of ways Robles’ life isn’t much different than that of a normal teen. He enjoys hanging out with his friends on the weekend. He took his girlfriend to prom this year.

But as he’s gotten older, the disease has caused him to lose the ability to play sports, like baseball and basketball.

“I was able to do all of the stuff that other kids were able to do,” he said. “I’d do the nebulizer in the morning, but most of my time wasn’t much different. ... I have to be more cautious about things because I get infections easier.”

When he started high school, his condition took time away from his schooling. One day he was fine, and then he’s stuck in bed for days, with his classwork piling up.

Then there were the visits to the hospitals. For a while he needed to go every few months and he would miss a month of school work.

But he refused to give up.

He returned to class and would catch up on his assignments even if it meant staying up until early in the morning or doing it in his bed while he recovered — all with his focus on keeping up with his peers.

“I was really scared because everybody in my family has graduated on time,” he said. “I didn’t want to be the first one out of me and my brother not to graduate.”

One step at a time

Robles mom Desiree Schulz said Pasco High School educators have been fantastic about working with him to find a way for him to succeed.

He spent his junior year using the school’s online program to take classes, but he didn’t do well being separated from his friends and returned to school at the beginning of this school year.

His condition derailed his plans one more time when he came down with a case of nontuberculosis mycobacteria.

The infection sent him to a Denver hospital for much of January. While he recovered enough to return home, he is on a two-year course of treatment including intravenous medications. This has kept him staying with his mom in Walla Walla for most of each week.

“He definitely his his days where his outlook on his situation is diminished, but usually a trip to hang out with his friends lifts him up,” she said. “He is online constantly trying to get through his coursework. The graduation date is really keeping him motivated.”

His schedule would put many students to shame.

He starts his online coursework at 9 a.m. and finishes on most days at 9 p.m. Then he takes an hour to watch Netflix before going to bed.

On Friday, he drives into Pasco and stays with his dad, visits his girlfriend and spends time with his friends.

When he graduates, Robles wants to continue his school work at Columbia Basin College and Washington State University Tri-Cities, and then go into home appraisals with his mom.

He knows his condition may mean he lives a shorter life than most people, but he says that makes him enjoy what he has right now.

“Time goes really fast, and there is not time to be upset about all the little things,” he said. “Work on making the future you want with someone. If it’s not that big of an issue, just let it go. If you can’t control it, there is no reason to get mad about it.”

This story was originally published June 1, 2019 at 1:41 PM.