The lawmaker was at the Warsaw school to present the 13-year-old with a police patch from the U.S. Capitol Police in Washington, D.C. Many Warsaw Police Department officers, Warsaw Community Schools Superintendent Dr. David Hoffert and Drake’s family also were on hand at the school assembly for the presentation.
Drake, now a Lakeview Middle School student, has collected 5,000 police badges from around the world. He was honored as a Riley Champion in 2018 as he fights brain tumors and vascular disorders.
Young fired the school assembly up like it was a pep rally before a big game.
He told Drake, “I was kind of a shy kid. You don’t seem all that shy, Drake. In fact, you’re like a real-life celebrity. And what’s so beautiful about Drake is, Drake uses his celebrity to elevate other people. You notice that? It’s not all about Drake. It’s about others.”
Young said the 5,000 patches Drake has were from police and fire departments.
“Drake, you are bringing attention to people who work so hard to keep us safe and secure every day. And for that, I want to thank you. I’m here to thank you in person and I think all of us should thank you again,” Young said, which drew another round of applause.
He said Drake has some big goals in life.
“Drake realizes – he’s been through some tough times, all of you know that – but Drake sees in himself what each of you have. You see, all of you are made in God’s image. God made you and God gave every single one of you gifts, whether you realize it or not, you all have gifts. And Drake is using his gift – of perseverance, of charisma, of popularity, maybe even a little bit of celebrity – to raise other people up. He’s serving others with his gifts. Maybe some day of all you will get to serve others, too,” Young said.
He suggested the students could serve others now by helping their neighbors, their parents or by being nice to someone in their class who was having a bad day.
“I draw power from the spirit of people like Drake Price, and that’s why I see these shirts – Drake Strong – and I ask you, ‘Students, are you Drake Strong?’” Young asked.
The school yelled, but Young said he couldn’t hear them and Drake agreed. So he asked again if they were “Drake Strong” and they yelled louder.
Young talked about how every day Drake goes out and raises people up every day. He said Drake learned about the Capitol Police who keep the politicians and public in the U.S. Capitol safe and Drake wanted to be a part of that police force, too. Drake and Lincoln teacher Scott Sterk got a hold of Young’s office and asked if it was possible, and Young said his office made sure it was. Young’s office had previously helped Sterk gets his adoptive child from Ethiopia to Indiana.
“Because we believe in you, because you believe in others,” Young told Drake.
As he presented Drake with the patch, and made him an honorary member of the Capitol Police force, Young got choked up. The school gave him another round of applause, and then Young started the school chanting “We love Drake!” After the 72-second chant, Young then got the bleacher to do several waves for Drake.
Once the students calmed down, Young talked about the tough days Drake has had.
“Drake is not only a survivor, Drake is a thriver. Drake has harnessed those gifts that all of you have and he’s made the world a little better than he found it. How many of us can say that? Drake, I love you, buddy. I am so proud to be up here with you, and we are all proud of you,” Young told him.
He then handed the microphone to Drake, who told his parents, grandparents and Lincoln School that he loved them. They replied they loved him, too.
“That says it all, and he leads by example. That’s the most important thing. Go out there and make the most of your lives,” Young said. “Drake strong!”
After the presentation, Miles Price, Drake’s father, said Drake was doing really good.
“His current status is, if it’s not broke, don’t fix it. The brain tumor is inoperable right now, and it’s not aggressive so it’s not growing, it’s not shrinking, it’s just staying dormant. They got what they could out of it and then we went through radiation, which is where he lost his eyesight in his left eye. So he only has eyesight in his right,” Miles said.
He said the loss of eyesight in one eye is a daily struggle for Drake, but “other than that, we did an MRI about three months ago and it’s not shrinking, not growing” so the doctor is waiting and seeing if the tumor gets aggressive. If it does get aggressive, the hospital will try other things about it.
“There’s other things that she wants to do to get to it and try to eradicate it out of there, but for right now she’s just going to re-review it in six months and go from there,” Miles said.
Drake goes to Riley Hospital for Children for several things, but his surgeon has changed over to Peyton Manning Hospital where he also goes.
Miles said the family is dealing with everything “day to day. That’s all you can do. You can’t just sit back and worry. You’ve just got to put it in God’s hands and let it go and He’ll walk you through it.”
Follow Drake’s story on Facebook under Drake Strong.
