Kobe Murphy is a 19-year-old Shaker Heights High School student with a perpetually warm smile and a personality to match.
His teacher, Ms. Susan Rainier, says that Kobe has been a valuable, trusted resource for her this year in the High School Multiple Disabilities Room. “All of the staff in our classroom this year are new to the High School,” says Ms. Rainier. “Kobe was helping me run the classroom in the beginning of the year!” She adds that Kobe is always quick to offer help when he hears a staff member say “Oh, I forgot…” or “I have to get…”
Kobe says his favorite part of the school day is “all of it” and he’s always excited to see his younger sister, Tristan, who is a senior, walking in the halls. His favorite classroom jobs are entering the daily attendance into the student information system and filling up as many water bottles as he can carry for the class. Friends of the High School Marching Band will recognize Kobe as a flag carrier in the annual Shaker Heights Memorial Day Parade. Kobe loves baked beans—his mother, Tocombamaria Murphy says he could eat them all day, every day—and when he isn’t at school his favorite past-time is one that’s familiar to many others his age: sleeping.
At home, Kobe is devoted to Mickey, a nine-pound Yorkshire Terrier that the family rescued two months ago. “When we first rescued Mickey, Kobe was terrified of him and wanted nothing to do with him,” says Ms. Murphy. “But gradually, Kobe came around. Today, he pets, walks, feeds—you name it—for Mickey!” She says that Kobe’s favorite thing to do is to attend church every Sunday morning.
Hours after birth, Kobe was diagnosed with Primary Pulmonary Hypertension and was given a grim prognosis. He spent 10 months in the UH Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital. Today, Ms. Murphy works at University Hospitals and says that Kobe always says he wants to work there, as well. “Kobe enjoys knowing that he is doing something that matters to others and knowing that he’s doing a good job at it,” says Ms. Murphy.