A child’s first day of kindergarten is one a parent will never forget, and for Rick Benton of Statesville it’s a day that many thought wouldn’t happen for his son.

Benton’s son, Wyatt, was born with cerebral palsy and a rare genetic disorder, 1p36 deletion syndrome. “The doctors said he would never walk, talk, or even live past four years old,” said Benton.

Now 17, Wyatt is on track to graduate from high school next year and will then attend Mitchell Community College. Benton credits the special education program at Iredell-Statesville Public Schools for Wyatt’s progress and said he will always cherish the time he watched his son’s first day of kindergarten.

“I guess like any parent when they see their five-year-old go off to kindergarten for the first time it’s emotional and exciting,” Rick said. “But I think it’s a little more so for us.”

Benton shared the first day of kindergarten story in the lottery’s N.C. Proud Moments in Education contest, becoming one of ten people to win $20,000. Benton plans to use the money to pay the costs of attending community college.

“He’s defiled the odds all his life,” Benton said. “He’s seventeen now. He runs, plays, does everything.”

In the N.C. Proud Moments contest, the Education Lottery asked North Carolinians to share their proudest moments in education and how they would use $20,000 to create more proud moments. The lottery received hundreds of moving responses. A panel of judges chose 10 winners from the 100 entries that got the most votes. The contest helped mark the lottery’s 10th anniversary as it raises money to support education programs in North Carolina. Since 2006, the lottery has raised more than $4.6 billion. The winners’ submissions and a video featuring their stories are posted on the N.C. Proud Moments website, located at http://www.ncproudmoments.com/.