ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Local musician Katy Eberts is making remarkable progress nearly a year after she was paralyzed in a crash. She recently shared a video of her walking on her own again, with a cane.

Doctors initially told Eberts that she would never walk again. However, she has been putting in the work every day, at home and at physical therapy, to get her legs moving and build muscle strength.

In the video, Eberts can be seen getting up and finding her balance with the help of a cane before starting to walk. The video received more than a thousand likes and hundreds of comments.

Eberts sang with the Fleetwood Mac tribute band Seven Wonders. The band’s van was involved in a crash on the Thruway in July of last year. Learning to get up and walk has taken a lot of time and concentration for Eberts, who said she has a laundry list of exercises to work on.

She also has a laundry list of activities she wants to be able to do again someday.

“You know, I was a baker before this accident too, and I used to do a ton of baking. I would love to start doing some baking again,” she said. “And I was a paddleboarder, I would love to get on a paddleboard again someday.”

But she’s starting small, one step at a time.

“One of my goals is, I want to be able to walk through Wegmans and get my own groceries, so that’s really the next step. I mean it’s little things right now,” Eberts said.

Eberts compared her journey to that of a musician practicing five days a week.

“You know, I’m a musician, I grew up taking music lessons, and I always compare it to that,” she said. “You’re not going to get good by just showing up to your half-hour lesson one-day a week. You have to put in the work at home too.”

While her focus has mostly been on physical recovery, she’s excited to integrate music back into her life.

Eberts said her mission in sharing this story is to help others get through challenging times. 

Her words of wisdom? Eat the cake! In other words, do the things that scare you and enjoy every minute of it.

Eberts posted a video to her Facebook page on Wednesday showing her taking steps with a cane. Here is her full Facebook post from Wednesday:

“Today, I am celebrating life and the fact that I’m still here. All I wanted to do today is walk on my own. Thank you Kelly Schauf for letting me prove to myself I could do it. And thank you to my camera man husband who has been the rock to my roll. I love you beyond measure Brian Eberts. This past year has brought incomprehensible challenges but it has also presented me with an enormous amount of love. I have been scrolling and reading all of your messages and again, I find myself humbled. Each day, try to wake up optimistic and with the intention of being kind and gentle. You never know when we’ll all need each other.”

Members of Eberts’ band have held concerts, including one last September at the Rochester Riverside Convention Center, to benefit her recovery.

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