CLEVELAND — Megan Parker of Akron knows all too well what it's like to have the odds stacked against you, after all she was born with a rare form of muscular dystrophy that impacts only one in a million people. In a wheelchair, relying on a ventilator to breathe everyday is a challenge yes but also a gift that this 24-year-old learned to embrace early on.
"From a young age my mom told me that if I want to change the world then I have to do it with my mind because my body said no," said Parker.
She had a passion for learning as a child, reading was her passion. Parker says her obstacles were opportunities.
"I always tell people that because of being physically disabled I didn't have necessarily all of the distractions that a normal person would. So I would stay in and my pastime was reading a book."
When it came time for college it was not even a question but her mother knew there was one hurdle.
"So because Megan does have the ventilator she technically needs 24-hour supervision basically to make sure that her airway stays clear," said her mom Jaclyn Sims.
They tried nurses but that didn't work so Parker's mom decided to do what she has always done and be there for her daughter, going to the University of Akron with her through not just her undergraduate years but also through law school.
"She doesn't know what no means or that you can't do something," said Sims. "She finds her own way to do it. We call it the Megan way and we always have."
With no interest in the law itself, her mom says she would pass time in those classes watching Netflix but after each class, she would reinforce what her daughter learned by asking her to explain it to her in laymen's terms.
"And I think that was one of the biggest helps for me in law school," says Parker, "was having somebody there to talk to about what I just learned and explain it to."
Parker would develop a love for Intellectual Property law, copyrights, and trademarks, which would lead her to the prestigious Cleveland law firm Benesch where she worked as a summer associate while in school, proving herself and joining the firm as an associate last year.
"She is here because we think she's going to be a star," said Mark Avsec, a Benesch partner and Vice Chair of its Intellectual Property Group. "She wouldn't be here otherwise."
When it came time to take the bar exam, she would end up passing on the very first try.
"I don't think that 10-year-old me would believe it if I said yes we really did make it," said Parker.
Accompanying her each day now in her downtown Cleveland office is her mom.
"I have a blast, I love coming to work with her and getting to see her do her thing," said Sims.
She's sharing this journey that Parker hopes to one day expand to include arguing a case in court.
At Benesch, Parker says she's found her dream job or maybe a one-off from her dream job.
"I've always told myself that I don't plan on leaving Benesch unless I go to the Supreme Court so."
No one who knows Parker would be surprised by that.
