High School Goes 'All In' To Surprise Student With Rare Genetic Disorder

CHICAGO (CBS) -- "All In For Ethan;" it's the message Riverside Brookfield High School students and staff showed to a special student on Friday.

A police escort was just one of several surprises Ethan Tkalec received at school on Friday. He is one of only 100 people in the world who suffer from giant axonal neuropathy (GAN), a rare inherited genetic nervous system disorder.

Ethan will undergo intense surgery on Tuesday; and his school wanted to make sure to send him off with a ton of love, support, and positive energy.

The school hosted a special breakfast from Blueberry Hill café. Classmates designed special T-shirts for Friday's surprise. They also wrote hundreds of letters wishing him well.

"It was exciting," Ethan said. "I liked the music."

His mother, Gelse Tkalec, said it was a touching gesture.

"I'm just so emotional right now. I can't even hardly breathe," she said.

"We want to pull out all the stops for Ethan today and show him how much we love him and send him off to surgery with a lot of positive, good energy," said Mari Mortensen, a social worker at the school.

Earlier in the week, the school also hosted a candy guitar raffle, and the Best Buddies organization sold wristbands for students to show their support. Best Buddies is a nonprofit dedicated to supporting people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Ethan Tkalec faces surgery next week related to his GAN. He's one out of 100 people in the world with the disorder.  His friends at Riverside Brookfield High wanted him to know he's not alone.

His surgery will involve putting in support rods to help him sit upright.