“Make up your mind that no matter what comes your way, no matter how difficult, no matter how unfair, you will do more than simply survive. You will thrive despite it.”                        Chad Foster

Fall 1963 – Oxford, England: It began with increasing clumsiness, tripping on the stairs, and weakness in his arms and legs. By the time Stephen Hawking returned home from college for Christmas break, his parents had noticed that he was slurring his words. It took his mother two months to convince him to go to the doctor.

The shocking diagnosis came a month later. The brilliant 21-year-old Cambridge University physics major had ALS, better known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. Doctors told him that he would not live to see his 25^th birthday.

Despite average grades, his fellow high school students had recognized Hawking’s brilliance and nicknamed him “Einstein.” He chose Cambridge because both parents had attended, and because he achieved a near-perfect score on his entrance exam.

After marrying Jane Wilde and completing his undergraduate work in physics and mathematics, Hawking received his PhD in applied mathematics and theoretical physics in March 1966, at about the time he was supposed to have died.

After completing his doctorate in the study of the origin of the universe and Albert Einstein’s field of general relativity, Hawking joined the faculty at Cambridge. By the early 1970s, his disability had progressed from a cane to crutches and then to a wheelchair. He could no longer lecture.

As Hawking’s physical condition deteriorated, his intellectual accomplishments soared. His research into black hole phenomena yielded new insights into the universe, and he answered one of Einstein’s questions regarding unified field theory.

In 1979, Hawking became the Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge, the distinguished professorship once held by Sir Isaac Newton. At that point, only family and close friends could understand his speech. Hawking resorted to computer software to aid him in oral and written communication and continued his research.

In 1985, Hawking was placed on life support after a severe bout of pneumonia. Jane refused to allow the doctors to take him off life support. Instead, a permanent tracheostomy was inserted to help him wean off the ventilator and allow him to be fed through a tube. He was eventually able to leave the hospital but initially required round-the-clock nursing care.

He remained in the Lucasian Professorship until 2009, when he became Director of Research at the Center for Theoretical Cosmology. He authored 15 books and scientific papers, including “A Brief History of Time,” which was on the British Sunday Times bestseller list for a record-breaking 237 weeks and has sold more than 10 million copies.

Hawking continued his research and travels to speak at various scientific gatherings, despite being able to move only his eyes and a few facial muscles. To communicate, he used a cheek muscle to activate a computer, which selected commonly used terms and phrases and made them audible through a speech synthesizer.

Stephen Hawking is a member of the British Royal Society, has won the U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom, and is ranked at No. 25 on the BBC’s list of the 100 Greatest Britons. He died in March 2018 at age 76, more than 50 years after doctors anticipated his death.

Hawking’s high school classmates were right. He was the Einstein of his generation, the most brilliant theoretical physicist since Albert Einstein. His IQ is among the ten highest in history. Brian Dickie, the research director at the Motor Neuron Disease Association, an organization that researches ALS, says, “In my opinion, Professor Hawking’s victory over ALS is no less impressive than his scientific research of the universe.”

Dr. Stephen Hawking’s 55-year struggle with ALS is the longest documented case in history. His work on the Theory of Relativity and quantum mechanics significantly expanded our understanding of the universe. Despite his progressive paralysis, he continued his groundbreaking work in physics, which increased global awareness of the disease and funding for ALS research.

Stephen Hawking, speaking of his illness in later life, said, “However difficult life may seem, there is always something you can do and succeed at. No matter how bad life is, it is important that you don’t give up. Concentrate on things your disability doesn’t prevent you from doing well, and don’t regret the things that it interferes with. Don’t be disabled in spirit as well as physically.”