Wake Forest teen with brain injury flies to Chicago rehab facility after 77 days in ICU

WAKE FOREST, N.C. (WTVD) -- A Wake Forest teen is one step closer to recovering from a devastating brain injury.

John Walter, alongside his mom Ann, flew to Shirley Ryan AbilityLab in Chicago Saturday. He was supposed to leave earlier this month but had a minor setback.

This comes after spending 77 days in the ICU unit at WakeMed.

Family members gifted the ICU crew blue t-shirts that read, "I helped save John Walter's life and all I got was this t-shirt."

What happened?

Days after his Wakefield High School graduation party, John was headed to play pickleball with his friends. He fell off the back of the pick-up truck and landed on his head.

The 18-year-old was supposed to start UNC-Chapel Hill in August.