A Largo High School freshman is getting international recognition for overcoming obstacles and spreading awareness about disabilities.

  • Jeremy Keyser given Yes I Can award
  • He has three brain surgeries before he was six months old
  • Family non-profit offers support for others with neurological disorders

The struggles for Jeremy Keyser, 15, started before birth.

"We discovered when he was born that he had a brain bleed prior to birth," said his mother, Paula Keyser. "So when he was just three hours old he was rushed to All Children's Hospital."

Jeremy Keyser had three brain surgeries before he was six months old and didn't talk until he was four. But he has never let his disabilities define him.

"I give myself a little pep tall, like, 'I can do this. I can do this.'"

His achievements have been recognized on an international level by the Council for Exceptional children. He just got back from Boston with a Yes I Can award.

Through his work with teacher's assistants, he went from reading on a fourth-grade level to making the honor roll and principal's list.


Jeremy Keyser shows off his Yes I Can award

"I am so proud of him, so proud I don't even know what to do,” said teacher's assistant Renee Voss. “He's an amazing kid."

When he's not busy with school work, Keyser is a spokesman for his family's non-profit that spreads awareness and support for others with neurological disorders.

"I could get more people like me to say, ‘Hey I'm not alone, I have friends or other people that are just like me,” he said.

He said the award makes him feel like the sky is the limit.

"Like I'm a super hero, like I can do anything,” he said. “I could be a congressman, a businessman, I could do anything I want to."

Keyser was one of about a dozen who received the international award.