Choices Matter Changemakers

Fletcher Cleaves

Fletcher Cleaves was involved in a tragic car crash that left him paralyzed from the chest down due to a driver suspected of texting while behind the wheel. This traumatic incident caused him to lose his football scholarship but with faith, perseverance, and a year of intense physical therapy, he re-enrolled in school and graduated from The University of Memphis with a degree in Computer Science. Now as a professional motivational speaker, Fletcher has shared his testimony of overcoming adversity, safe driving, importance of education, and faith-based living with ESPN, College Game-Day, and over 700 high schools, colleges, and businesses. Fletcher is also a world traveler obtaining the nickname “The Wheelchair Nomad”. He travels to many countries living life to the fullest while also bringing awareness to accessibility issues in the travel industry.

To many, his crash seemed like the end of a young man’s promising future, but on the contrary, it became the prologue to his destiny.

Rave Reviews

If you’d like to share your experience, we’d love to hear about it!

Thank you, Fletcher Cleaves!

Bellow Falls Middle School

Thank you so much for bringing the Choices Matter presentation to Saint Joseph High School. Fletcher Cleaves delivered a powerful message that truly resonated with our students. The kids were utterly engaged from beginning to end, and many shared how impactful and inspiring they found his story.

We are so grateful for the opportunity to host such a meaningful and timely program, especially as our students prepare for Prom and the end of the school year. Please extend our thanks to your team and, most importantly, to Fletcher for his honesty, energy, and encouragement. His message was exactly what our school community needed to hear.

We look forward to working with you again in the future!

Mr. Corey
Assistant Principal of Student Life
Saint Joseph High School
South Bend, 
Indiana

Fletcher, thank you. You are like a ray of sunshine, shining through even the darkest times. I also envy how kind you are, not being mad at the lady? You’r ereally a great person. Thank you so so so much. You’re also really funny, as well as a good human being. I bet a lot of people were inspired, like me! Thank you for your wisdom!

Student
Bellow Falls Middle School
Rockingham, 
Vermont

Thank you Hillari,

Everything went wonderful yesterday why a great speaker and team!! Thank you so much for working with us, I think it really impacted our kids and I know they enjoyed it thank you so much! If we were to send a thank you can you tell me who we could address that to?

Pen Bay Christian School
Rockland, 
Maine

Dear Fletcher Cleaves,
My name is Anna. I play basketball; in the winter I ride horse. Pretty much all year, and I play feld hockey all year round.
I don’t know yet if I want to play field hockey in college but I know I want to be really good now and I want to be the best at it. Your speech helped me to realize that I can be the best, and nobody can tell me otherwise.
My favorite thing you said was, ‘Sky is not the limit.’

Thank you so much for coming I enjoyed it very much.

Anna
Student
Bellow Falls Middle School
Rockingham, 
Vermont

It was absolutely fantastic! From the set up to the presentation- everything was very well done! If you have any kind of evaluation form for me to fill out, I would be happy to. It was a blessing for our students and staff! Fletcher did a great job relating to and engaging with the students.

So glad you reached out to us and we have this connection now!

Maria
Thomas Magnet School
Shelbyville, 
Tennessee

We are hearing good things about your recent appearance at our high school. Definitely spurred conversations!

Thank you for coming to BFMS on Friday, January, 24th. You helped me and others realize what could happen if we were to take our eyes of the road for 2 seconds, I appreciate you coming all the way to Bellons Falls Vermont to tell us your story. Thank you again Fletcher, for explaining what could happend if we looked off the road for a few seconds.

Thank you,

Kaitlin
Student
Bellow Falls Middle School
Rockingham, 
Vermont

Thank you so much for bringing the Choices Matter presentation to Saint Joseph High School. Fletcher Cleaves delivered a powerful message that truly resonated with our students.

The kids were utterly engaged from beginning to end, and many shared how impactful and inspiring they found his story.

We are so grateful for the opportunity to host such a meaningful and timely program, especially as our students prepare for Prom and the end of the school year. Please extend our thanks to your team and, most importantly, to Fletcher for his honesty, energy, and encouragement. His message was exactly what our school community needed to hear.

We look forward to working with you again in the future!

Corey
Saint Joseph High School
South Bend, 
Indiana

Thank you so much for going to our school and telling us your story. I love how you’re still positive even after everything that has happened. You have such good advice for everything. Not everyone has neough courage to tell their story to people. So, I thought it was cool that you did. You seem like such a funny person. You have a crazy story. But somehow you act like nothing ever happened. I love how even after you got paralyzed that didn’t stop you from doing your dreams and what you love.

You are an amazing person.

Student
Bellow Falls Middle School
Choices Matter Podcast Logo

Fletcher on the Podcast

We are joined on the Choices Matter Podcast by Fletcher Cleaves, a nationally recognized speaker for the Choices Matter program and author of The Sky is Not the Limit: The Fletcher Cleaves Story.

Fletcher shares his unique personal story — how a distracted driver changed the course of his life forever, forcing him off the road and into a wheelchair. With a message grounded in humor, resilience, and hope, Fletcher reminds us that while we can’t control everything, the decisions we do make carry weight. Fletcher’s story is a powerful reminder that decisions made have consequences, and sometimes, those consequences reach far beyond ourselves.