--- title: Michigan Teen Walks 40 Miles to Raise Cerebral Palsy Awareness description: Over the weekend, a Michigan teen trekked 40 miles with his younger brother on his back to raise awareness of cerebral palsy canonical: https://time.com/2846313/michigan-teen-carries-brother-40-miles-for-cerebral-palsy-awareness/ author: Melissa Hellmann article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-06-09T09:09:44.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T08:55:26.138Z article:section: Health og:title: Michigan Teen Walks 40 Miles to Raise Cerebral Palsy Awareness og:description: Over the weekend, a Michigan teen trekked 40 miles with his younger brother on his back to raise awareness of cerebral palsy og:url: https://time.com/2846313/michigan-teen-carries-brother-40-miles-for-cerebral-palsy-awareness/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbb9d565c40fd8206/698696b213c79f87b51928ec/correction-brotherly-_wong.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Brotherly Walk og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Michigan Teen Walks 40 Miles to Raise Cerebral Palsy Awareness twitter:description: Over the weekend, a Michigan teen trekked 40 miles with his younger brother on his back to raise awareness of cerebral palsy twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbb9d565c40fd8206/698696b213c79f87b51928ec/correction-brotherly-_wong.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Michigan Teen Carries Brother 40 Miles for Cerebral Palsy Awareness by [Melissa Hellmann](https://time.com/author/melissa-hellmann/) ## Melissa Hellmann Jun 9, 2014 9:09 AM UTC  Braden Gandee, 7, rides on the back of his brother Hunter, 14, as they close in on the final miles to the University of Michigan's Bahna Wrestling Center on Sunday, June 8, 2014\. Hunter carried Braden, who has cerebral palsy, 40 miles from Temperance, Mich., to Ann Arbor. Braden Gandee, 7, rides on the back of his brother Hunter, 14, as they close in on the final miles to the University of Michigan's Bahna Wrestling Center on Sunday, June 8, 2014\. Hunter carried Braden, who has cerebral palsy, 40 miles from Temperance, Mich., to Ann Arbor.Chris Asadian—AP Photo by [Melissa Hellmann](https://time.com/author/melissa-hellmann/) ## Melissa Hellmann Jun 9, 2014 9:09 AM UTC A Michigan teen trekked 40 miles with his 7-year-old brother on his back to raise awareness of cerebral palsy, the cerebellar degenerative disorder that prevents his sibling from walking himself. Hunter Gandee, 14, braved blustery conditions during the two-day hike from his hometown of Temperance, Mich., to the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. His brother Braden has struggled with cerebral palsy his entire life. Hunter told [ABC](http://www.abc15.com/news/national/teen-starts-40-mile-walk-for-cerebral-palsy-awareness) that although he wrestles in 100-degree conditions at Bedford Junior High, “it’s nowhere near how hard Braden works.” The teenager originally concocted the idea after raising $350 in green wristbands for cerebral palsy awareness month at his school. Afterward he wanted his efforts to reach beyond his classmates. “We want kids to understand Braden,” Hunter told [MLive](http://www.mlive.com/sports/ann-arbor/index.ssf/2014/06/temperance%5Fbedford%5Fjunior%5Fhigh.html). He was further inspired by a dream that his mother had of him carrying Braden to Mackinac, Mich., where the family had often vacationed. This led to two months of preparation for carrying his 50-lb. brother on his back. The courageous duo were joined by other family members for the final portion of the journey, which nearly ended early because Braden’s legs were badly chafing. But after a brief rest-stop and repositioning Braden, the brothers completed the mission in 30 hours. “We pushed through it,” an exhausted Hunter told ABC. “And we’re here.” On the walk’s Facebook [page](https://www.facebook.com/cerebralpalsyswagger), the Gandees express hope that the walk will earn the attention of engineers and doctors for “the need for innovative ideas in mobility aids and medical procedures.” Michigan Teen Walks 40 Miles to Raise Cerebral Palsy Awareness ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/2846313/michigan-teen-carries-brother-40-miles-for-cerebral-palsy-awareness/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/2846313/michigan-teen-carries-brother-40-miles-for-cerebral-palsy-awareness/"},"headline":"Michigan Teen Carries Brother 40 Miles for Cerebral Palsy Awareness","datePublished":"2014-06-09T09:09:44.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T08:55:26.138Z","description":"Valiant 14-year-old Hunter Gandee carried his 7-year-old brother Braden strapped on his back for 30 hours to urge engineers to invest in innovative tools for increased mobility","url":"https://time.com/2846313/michigan-teen-carries-brother-40-miles-for-cerebral-palsy-awareness/","keywords":["Developmental Disorders","Living","Michigan","brothers"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbb9d565c40fd8206/698696b213c79f87b51928ec/correction-brotherly-_wong.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Melissa Hellmann","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/melissa-hellmann/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbb9d565c40fd8206/698696b213c79f87b51928ec/correction-brotherly-_wong.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Brotherly Walk","caption":"Brotherly Walk","creditText":"Chris Asadian—AP Photo","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/developmental-disorders/","name":"Developmental Disorders"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/2846313/michigan-teen-carries-brother-40-miles-for-cerebral-palsy-awareness/","name":"Michigan Teen Carries Brother 40 Miles for Cerebral Palsy Awareness"}}]}] ```