Pennsauken police help welcome home teen battling rare disorder

PENNSAUKEN, N.J. - It was a hero's welcome home for an all-star high school athlete immobilized overnight by a rare disorder called Guillain-Barré syndrome in which your body's immune system attacks your nerves.

"One day I woke up and I couldn't walk anymore so that's when I knew something was wrong," 17-year-old Amanda Lezcano told FOX 29's Jennifer Joyce.

After three and a half months at CHOP, Lezcano is on the mend. She’s smiling once again, thanks in part to her role models at the Pennsauken Police Department.  They organized a police escort home from the hospital to help boost her spirits. Lezcano is a junior police academy graduate who has her heart set on becoming an FBI agent now more than ever. 

"It felt really good I felt loved. I didn’t know I had that much support. I definitely needed it," she said. 

While Lezcano has to sit out her senior year of varsity sports, she is expected to make a full recovery.

"Seeing her facial expression, her family facial expression, all the emotion. It was beautiful couldn’t ask for anything better," Pennsauken Police Officer Tim Mireles said.