Revisiting One Graduate's Inspiring Story, Five Years Later

For the first time in more than a year, students have the opportunity to walk across the stage at Baxter Arena and receive their degrees.

The importance of that walk, which measures approximately four feet, isn’t lost on UNO alumna Taryn Schaaf. For her, it is a memory she’ll never forget.

Five years ago, on May 6, 2016, Taryn did something she was told she’d never be able to do following a 2009 ATV accident that left her paralyzed. She walked across the stage to get her Bachelor of Social Work degree with an assist from an exoskeleton developed by UNO community partners QLI.

“I didn’t walk across stage at my first graduation, when I could walk, so to ‘walk’ across stage this time felt like an accomplishment. I had a goal to walk across the stage and had to work for it.”

Five years later, Schaff is working as the Social Services Coordinator for Brookstone Village, an Omaha-based nursing home and rehabilitation center. In her role she makes sure any client admitted or discharged is properly assessed, supported, and has what they need to recover.

“In that way, my experience with my own rehab was beneficial because I’ve been through all of that, and I’ve been able to connect to a lot of people that way.”

Taryn joined Brookstone even before her graduation, staying on following an internship she received through the School of Social Work. Today, she says, she is supporting the next generation of Mavericks.

“Ever since I was an intern, we’ve had UNO interns at Brookstone,” she says. “It’s been nice because I can say, oh, how is this professor and talk about how different campus is even from just five years ago. I also give them tips on how to handle their own graduation.”

One piece of advice she gives to this year’s graduates? Find a job you love.

“If you don’t love what you do, find something else. Life can change in a minute and you don’t want to look back and think about being unhappy.”

In looking back at her own graduation and the path that led her to where she is today, she says the important thing for her was to never give up and never take “No” for an answer.

In addition to her work at Brookstone, Taryn recently joined the Mayor’s Commission for Disabilities, has stayed active with QLI – even doing a CrossFit class and riding an ATV for the first time since her accident.

“What I remember the most about that day was that my family was there and that I was able to do something that people said I couldn’t.”

Despite her initial plans, Taryn hasn’t continued to use the exoskeleton that helped her achieve her goal five years ago, but she’s kept in touch with her physical therapists at QLI, including several UNO alumni, who are continuing to do work with other patients utilizing the assistive device. Prior to the pandemic, Taryn says she would keep busy by visiting her hometown in Farragut, Iowa; go to rodeos; help on her parents’ farm; and travel with friends.

And while she is more independent now than she ever could have dreamed immediately following her accident, Taryn says she didn’t get there alone. That’s something she hopes this semester’s graduates, and future graduates, will remember.

“I used my professors and advisors to navigate through my classes and always made sure everything was accessible. They were available to talk and be moral support as well. As you are making plans for the future, always make reachable goals, but also utilize resources that are given and don’t be afraid to ask for help.”