WATCH: Baton Rouge man rebuilds strength and walks for the first time in a year

BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - Every therapy minute counts when it comes to rebuilding strength. You can become more mobile if you have the right level of technology. A local man used a form of equipment to exceed his goals.

58-year-old Victor Roche has been on dialysis for over 12 years. His sister, Cacynthia Roche said he’s been at the Baton Rouge Health Care Center for the last year.

“When he got so sick and his lower extremities starting giving out on him, we just thought he was not going to be able to get up,” said Cacynthia Roche, Victor’s sister.

For the first time in 365 days, his sister and mom, Jerri Roche, got to watch Victor take his first steps.

“We actually thought this would never happen again,” said Cacynthia. “Honestly.”

“We’ve been praying very hard that this day would come,” said Jerri Roche, Victor’s mother. “We do appreciate the people who are here. How helpful they’ve been. They’ve been very nice to us as a family.”

Thanks to prayer, his therapists and a new piece of equipment called NeuroGym, Victor gained his strength back.

The machine helps build endurance while taking weight off when standing up.

“By using the machine and really encouraging and motivating him and the team, we got to a place where we went over and beyond his goals and ours too,” said Ty Joseph, an Occupational Therapist and Rehab Director at the Baton Rouge Health Care Center.

His sister said they always had this running joke. She said that they would tell Victor he was going to dance at her wedding. Now he’s going to be able to join her on the dance floor.

Baton Rouge Health Care is one of the only facilities in the area that has the NeuroGym equipment.

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