The American Spirit: Strong Swimmer

Disabled Swimmer Jonathan Heider Defies Expectations

(CBS)  It's a rare and quiet moment at the Heiders' house in Green Bay, Wisconsin, for parents Linn and Jim, and their boys Brennan and Jonathan. The boys were born with severe birth defects, which is both the point and beside the point of this story, as CBS News Correspondent Richard Schlesinger reports.

They are disabled but still they are able to do what most teenagers do: indulge their passions. Jonathon is 16, and a collector of sorts.

He collects gold medals. So far he has 30 of them.

He got the medals for swimming. It would seem an unlikely sport for Jonathon, but it's what he loves, and why he loves it makes all the sense in the world.

"You don't have to use any prosthetic legs for it. And you don't have to use a wheelchair for it. So it's kind of more free," said Jonathan.

He's ranked in the top 25 in his class internationally for paralympic swimming.

His best event? "Probably more of a distance thing like a 200 freestyle," he said.

And yes, people have told him he shouldn't do this - that he should be careful. He might get hurt physically or emotionally

"If something happens it's not the end of the world," he said. "You just keep on going on."

His coach Dave Korst taught Jonathon how to compete and win those medals. Along the way, he learned a few things from his swimmer. It sounds a little like a poolside parable.

"We've got to use what we have. And try to maximize what we have," said Korst.

Jonathon started out with every little until the Heiders came into his life. They had already raised three able-bodied children before they decided they could do more. So they adopted Jonathan from an orphanage in Croatia.

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"I would imagine when people find out that he is a swimmer they do a double take, said his mom Linn. "I'm just very proud of him."

And there have been doubters in his life - people who would not have blamed Jonathon for choosing another, easier path.

"I think that's just kind of my spirit of proving people wrong and saying yes I can and this is what I've done and show the world what I'm made of," said Jonathan.