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This is a love story that all people, especially mothers, can fully understand. Cathy Mayo and her son Delmace (pronounced DELL-MOSS) Mayo share a unique life/love experience. The beginning of their tale took place when Cathy journeyed to Port-au-Princee, Haiti, to perform volunteer work in 2006. On her third journey to the island in 2008, she met a two-month-old baby named Delmace at the Wings of Hope Orphanage in Las Hobas.
“The minute I saw him, my heart went out to him,” said Cathy. “I just knew he was special.”
This tiny Black child touched the heart of this single white woman. “I wanted to be the mother he needed,” she said.
Cathy Mayo would become the lifeline to this orphaned child of Haiti, a child who came with special needs, the most significant being his inability to walk due to a spinal cord injury at birth, along with learning disabilities (ADHD and Dyslexia).
With the love for this child in her heart and undeterred by the challenges that would come with raising him, Ms. Mayo adopted Delmace and brought him to America. The young child arrived in the United States speaking very little English. His first impression of Boston was that it was a “weird place.”
Delmace with his mother, Cathy PHOTO: CATHERINE MAYO
“He only knew 20 words of English by the time I enrolled him in school,” said Cathy.
Those 20 words were more than any of his classmates spoke. Delmace was the only child who communicated verbally in his entire class. All of the other children used Augmentative Alternative Communication (AAC) devices to talk and learn. His ability to communicate was honed as a baby when he learned how to get and protect the small portions of food he received at the Wings of Hope Orphanage.
As the young man grew, so did his love for sports and competition. Beginning with a passion for auto racing, Delmace ventured into the world of athletics. And while mother Cathy held her breath, her rambunctious son competed in wheelchair sledding, hockey, basketball and soccer.
He took on the role of playing goaltender, leading his Gardner Pilot Middle School team to a city championship with a shutout in the title game. He also participated in WCMX Wheelchair Motocross, achieving success in all his endeavors.
His mom said, “While he was having fun, I was praying that he wouldn’t get seriously injured or worse. He was having fun. I was trying to keep my heart/pulse rate in check.”
Delmace continued to grow in size and athletic ability.
“So much of my success comes from my determination to succeed, especially against bigger and stronger opponents,” he said. “It is something that is built into me. Whenever people tell me I can’t do something, it makes me more focused [on meeting] the challenge, whatever it is.”
A lifetime of meeting these tests has brought this paralympic athlete to his current status as a highly competitive wheelchair racer.
The three-time National Indoor Champion in the mile event, held at the New Balance National Competition, draws raves from many in his sport.
“He is one of the hardest working athletes I have ever coached,” says Anthony “Tony” Holiday, his Brighton High School coach. “I constantly have to push him to properly rest and let his body recover, but he won’t have any of that. He is that driven to succeed.”
“Witnessing Delmace’s growth in wheelchair racing over the years, first participating in our youth events to now completing his first Boston Marathon, has been inspirational,” said Taylor Wilson, head of Para-athletes at the BAA.
“At recent races, he’s lined up to Paralympic and Boston Marathon winners. He has raced with determination alongside them, all while [competing as] a high school student,” Wilson said, adding, “We are excited to see what the future holds for Delmace and can’t wait to see him compete at the next level at the University of Arizona, one of the top 50 programs in the nation. Fifty years ago, the Boston Marathon first incorporated a wheelchair division, and it is a testament to athletes like Delmace who’ve helped to make it the world-class race it is today.”
Delmace’s intensive training has allowed him to travel as far as Thailand to compete successfully in international competitions. One of his most significant athletic achievements occurred this year when he completed the 50th Boston Marathon Wheelchair event in two hours and four minutes. When asked about the dreaded trek up Heartbreak Hill, the 19-year-old Boston Green Academy graduate, who will be a U of A Wildcat this fall, said, “Heartbreak Hill was easy, but the later hill, around Beacon Street nearly tricked me up.” He added another page to his legacy by closing out his high school career by lapping just about every contestant in the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association State two-mile championship meet.
His latest accomplishment came this past Sunday in the Boston Athletic Association 10K Road Race, when he finished in a time of 28 minutes and five seconds despite poor weather conditions.
When asked about his future plans, he replied, “My ultimate goal is to compete in the 2028 Olympic Games. Until then, I’ll just keep working hard to improve my skills. I want to compete as a Paralympian for at least the next 10 years. I believe that I have things that many of my competitors don’t have: a special level of skill and the determination to succeed no matter what obstacles are placed in front of me.”
In the words of his mother, “My son is a special human being. I knew that from the first time I ever laid my eyes on him.”
He is certainly, Cathy Mayo; he is a very special young man and athlete raised by a truly exceptional human being.
This article is dedicated to every person who takes on the responsibility of being an adoptive parent.
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