High School Senior Saves All His Money For Two Years To Buy Electric Wheelchair For Friend

Aug 01, 2019

Everyone remembers their friends from high school. Even if you were unpopular, everyone had a group of friends in high school that they will never forget and always remember with fond appreciation.

Learning and growing together for four years, your high school friends will always be some of the people that know you best in this world. Recently, two best friends that go to the same high school in Arkansas showed the strength of true friendship.

Tanner Wilson and Brandon Qualls are both seniors at Caddo Hills School District. While Tanner and Brandon are best friends, they’re really more like brothers, doing everything together. Brandon is also a special needs student, having a condition that requires him to use a wheelchair. As Brandon’s chair is manually powered, it often places a great strain on his arms, causing pain and exhaustion. Seeing the problem that Brandon faced, Tanner came up with a plan to help his friend. Secretly, Tanner has been saving money so that his best friend can buy a motorized wheelchair.

“I wish people would care more about others than just their selves,” Wilson told CBS News.

Tanner got a part-time job to pay for the wheelchair, saving up for nearly two years. When asked by reporters why he gave Brandon all of his money, Tanner said that Brandon has been there for him many times in their high school career and that he wanted to return the favor. When the big day came for Tanner to finally give Brandon his gift, the young man could hardly believe Tanner’s generosity.

Brandon said that tears filled his eyes as he caught sight of his new wheelchair. Brandon says that he has always wanted a motorized chair and that it greatly reduces pressure on his arms. Where once he had to make a strenuous effort to get around, Brandon can now glide down hallways with the press of a button.

"He’s just been a really good friend and I wanted to do him a favor," Wilson told local television station KTHV. "I just felt like I needed to do it, and I wanted to do it."

News quickly spread around the school of Tanner’s generosity, with one of their teachers, Ms. Ray, decorating the boy’s wheelchair with colorful orange flames.

Ever humble, Tanner says that he wishes the whole world would be more generous, declaring that the greatest gift he received was the smile on Brandon’s face.

What do you think of Tanner’s gift to Brandon? What are some of your best memories with your friends from high school? Let us know what you think in the comments and pass this along to your friends to see what they think!