A long-term care community for adults with physical disabilities who are in wheelchairs held a surprise celebration Friday for a group of residents heading to college Monday morning.

"I've been wanting to go for the last 25 years," Aaron Deede said. "And so finally your dream comes true." 

Deede, 40, was paralyzed in a car crash when he was a teenager. Now, he'll be going to the Community College of Philadelphia, hoping to become a teacher.

The residents headed to college have been in the Therapeutic Education Program at the Inglis House in Philadelphia's Wynnefield Heights neighborhood.

Instructor Jeremy Ault says the students have spent a year preparing for the upcoming classes that will be in-person and remote.

"Very proud. I'm really excited for them to start," Ault said. "They've been looking forward to this for a very long time, and I can't wait to see their successes as they continue to grow and develop, not just in school as individuals."

Ault says it's a special accomplishment because the residents face a number of challenges, like simply getting around.

"The first year was kind of tough because I wasn't doing a lot," Nikos Rapach said.

Rapach has a spinal injury from an accident two years ago, when he had been thinking of going to a trade school.

"So, since I know I'm not gonna be able to hold a hammer, I know I gotta pick up a book or something," Rapach said.

After college, he hopes to teach high school history.