It’s OK to struggle, as long as you don’t give up

A well-known figure in Cadott, is 2013 high school graduate Eric Weiland, who has become an integral part of the community where he lives and works. Weiland is employed full-time, as a Chippewa Falls firefighter paramedic and rescue diver; is a volunteer firefighter and EMT, at Cadott and Boyd; is a fire investigator for the Cornell Area Fire Department; and also serves on the Cadott Village Board. However, the road to get to where he is now, was not easy, which Weiland highlighted, May 14, as the special speaker at the Cadott Lions Club Honors Program. Weiland struggled from elementary school, all the way through high school and college, as he couldn’t absorb what he was learning and couldn’t concentrate. He was diagnosed with ADHD, which he later found out was actually dyslexia. As he grew older, Weiland knew that he wanted to be a firefighter paramedic, where his heart was. It was hard, but he was determined to attend the classes he needed, to become certified for his life career. Although he was granted special dispensation and did receive help along the way, Weiland also had to find a way to relearn how to do math, which he did himself, because he wasn’t making excuses. “If you’re struggling in life, don’t blame somebody else,” he said, “I have to be strong myself.” Despite those struggles, Weiland persevered, to obtain his dream and, because of that, he’s seen three men, who were in cardiac arrest, visit him at the fire station and shake his hand, for saving their lives. “That right there, was worth every penny, every struggle I ever had,” said Weiland. Weiland knows that everybody has issues, everybody struggles in life and that’s OK. “If you have a disability or have an issue, just never give up,” he said. “It’s how you want to handle it, is how you’re going to get through it. And you can do anything. Because I did.”