Inspiring People: Naples teen with scoliosis is proof you can do it all

A Naples teen is proof you can do it all.

Freshman Sadie Scardino is on the varsity cross country team, she acts, she even sings at Red Sox events. Imagine being her mom and dad, driving her to all those practices.

What those who see her running from one thing to another may not know is that Sadie has a secret: she has scoliosis.

“I found out in sixth grade, during a health screening,” Sadie said. “When I’m running my races, sometimes I get muscle spasms.”

Three years later, she needs surgery. Her mother Kim Scardino is driving Sadie up to St. Petersburg to have a major procedure done.

“When you have an s shape for a back, for a spine, it starts to push on other organs,” Kim Scardino said. “They’re going to cut her from the middle neck down, exposing her back and her spine.”

A pair of metal rods will be fused to Sadie’s spine and bolted in place.

“There’s a lot of worries as a mom,” Kim said.

Sadie shares those worries, but she doesn’t show it. When asked for an interview, she agreed in the hope that her journey would inspire other kids facing challenges.

“You can’t just let something pull you back from something you love,” Sadie said.

Despite the pain, Sadie’s coach Mark Pembroke says she’s still on the track at 5 every morning, doing 800’s on repeat.

“I could tell that she was a tough kid, and that’s something that you really don’t teach that easily,” Pembroke said.

And she’s turned a scary countdown to surgery into something fun, creating a list of things to do before, like rock climbing.

“Don’t let anything stop you,” Sadie said.

“I think I cry about this more than she does,” Kim said.

Sadie’s surgery is Nov. 30, and she’s already talking about when she can get back on the track.