I'm Possible: Cason Weatherton Pushes Past Expectations

A Texas high school student-athlete is gaining national attention because of a video highlighting his workouts - and the courage he displays by flying beyond limitations every single day.

In the small community of Henderson, Texas, about two hours east of Dallas, deep in the weight room at the town’s high school, a sophomore is pushing weights up and down - and pushing past perceived expectations.

“I see a part of myself I didn’t know I would ever see,” said Cason Weatherton.

What Cason Weatherton did not expect was to become a powerlifter.

Born with only one leg after “amniotic band syndrome” caused him to lose it during his mother’s pregnancy, Cason had to quickly adapt to a life that involved extra challenges. But he did so with a “prove-them-wrong” attitude almost immediately.

“When he was younger we didn’t know what to make of it,” said Shalondra Weatherton, Cason’s mother. “When he went through therapy, they didn’t think he would crawl. But when he was four months old he found a way and was crawling in his own way. It’s never stopped him. He would hop when he was little. He would pick a goal. If he didn’t make it to where he was trying to go instead of standing up going from that point, he would start over until he made his goal without falling. Nothing stops him.”

Nothing stops Cason, not even the thought of joining the powerlifting team at his high school -- an idea the school’s coach, Kyle Farrell, embraced but admitted would require a little creativity.

“It was let’s do it and find out how to do it,” said Farrell. “I wasn’t sure what he’d be able to do. There’s three lifts in a powerlifting competition: squat, bench, and deadlift. I knew he could bench, but on one leg how could he do squat and deadlift?”

“At first it was rough because I had been on crutches for so long, it was hard to get the bar behind my back,” said Cason.

“He said mom I don’t think I can do it,” said Shalondra. “I said, Cason, we don’t use can’t. We’ll figure out how to do it. He came home in three days and said, 'Mom, I did a squat!' I was all excited, shed a few tears, and came back all excited.”

“I’m really proud of squatting, because I’m sure I’m not the only one, but I’m sure there’s not a lot of people with one leg who can squat,” Cason said. “It feels really good because I know I can do it now.”

And with the confidence that came with that realization, Cason began to put in extra work in the weight room, focusing mostly on his balance, eventually joining the Henderson powerlifting team and putting his progress on display at a weightlifting meet - with social media videos of his deadlift and power squat grabbing national attention.

“It was really crazy because I’m a very introverted person,” said Cason. “When everybody was talking about it, I was like wow this is happening. It’s been a crazy experience.”

“It really makes you question your heart's determination and priorities,” said Farrell. “If he can do it then what am I doing trying to get out of something? It pushes everybody to see the kind of things that he’s doing.”

And so, what Cason Weatherton continues to do is show up every day, pushing the weights in the Henderson High School weight room up and down, inadvertently inspiring everyone who sees the sophomore embracing powerlifting as his new passion - surprising even himself as he pushes past perceived expectations.

“He’s helping somebody who didn’t think they could,” said Shalondra. “He’s showing them that you can. Use what you’ve got and you’ll be great.”

The next challenge Cason is focused on - powerlifting while using his prosthetic leg, which he said is difficult mostly because of balance issues, but like always, he refuses to give up and believes success is not far away.