[Home] [Headlines] [Latest Articles] [Latest Comments] [Post] [Sign-in] [Mail] [Setup] [Help]
Status: Not Logged In; Sign In
|
Resistance See other Resistance Articles Title: Legally blind teen climbs Grand Teton JACKSON (AP) -- Duncan McLaurin has brilliant glassy eyes, noticeable only when he takes a moment to look up at you. But Duncan rarely does -- his eyes are too sensitive to the light. His hair is white, and his eyelashes are too. Duncan, 14, has albinism, a genetic condition that affects skin and hair pigmentation -- and also eyesight. He can partially see your face up to a few feet away -- where your eyes, mouth and nose are supposed to be -- but can't tell your expression. He is legally blind, but that hasn't stopped this clever kid from being part of the team that had the first successful rocket launch in the National Federation of the Blind's space camp. Nor did it slow him down when he climbed the Grand Teton this summer. "I'm very proud of what he has done," said Bob McLaurin, Duncan's dad and Jackson's town administrator. Duncan was one of 13 chosen for a full scholarship through the National Federation for the Blind to attend space camp in June at the organization's headquarters in Baltimore. NASA officials and university professors taught the students concepts in space exploration -- physics, math and electronics -- to help them succeed at their main project: the launch of a self-made, 10-foot-tall rocket at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., just outside Washington. Duncan's team was the first to have a successful launch in the three years of the program. The federation offers the camp to teach blind kids they can have professional jobs, even in NASA, despite their impaired vision. "You're learning skills that you could apply to the real jobs," Duncan said. Duncan said he considers himself a normal kid. He doesn't know what it's like to have perfect vision, because he was born without it. "I don't know anything better," he said. In utero, the retina doesn't develop in the eyes of a child affected by albinism. As a result, the iris does not have enough pigment to screen out stray light coming into the eye, which causes sensitivity. "I'm normal," Duncan said. "But things are detracting from my normality. Some things are just more challenging." On the weekend of Aug. 19 and 20, Exum Mountain Guides co-owner Rod Newcomb took Bob McLaurin and Duncan up the Owen-Spalding route of the 13,770-foot Grand Teton. It was Duncan's first ascent after getting rained out and being unfit in past tries. Duncan said he just had to be extra careful about his footwork; otherwise the climbing wasn't that challenging, and it felt good to finally do it. He hopes to climb the Upper Exum route sometime in the future and also the Middle and South Tetons. Duncan's mom, Julie, said he definitely has to adjust to life's obstacles, but doesn't make poor vision an excuse. He skis, climbs, draws, plays on the computer and watches TV. "It was very fortunate that he was born in the age of technology," his mom said. On the computer, for example, Duncan just bumps up the font size and uses color contrasts to see the words clearer. He also likes to draw. "You forget by being around him that he is visually impaired," Julie McLaurin said. He is confident and acts like any teenager around his parents. While Bob McLaurin explained his lack of knowledge on the topics Duncan was studying at space camp, the 14-year-old started to get embarrassed and said, "Well, you know more about government and management than I do, Dad." His mom worries, however, that sometimes people don't understand his physical traits or why he looks down when he talks. She said people may come up to him and say, "Hi, Duncan," but unless he recognizes their voices, he struggles to know what to do. It's easier for him if they say, "Hi, Duncan, it's so and so from class." "He's a bright kid and does really well, but he misses a lot of things," Julie McLaurin said. This school year, Duncan is setting off on a new adventure, transferring from the Journeys School to Jackson Hole High School. "You can do anything," Duncan said. "It's just going to take extra effort."
Post Comment Private Reply Ignore Thread Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/Latest Begin Trace Mode for Comment # 1.
#1. To: Dakmar (#0)
Sometimes I pretend I'm legally blind so I can bump into women and feel them up.
#2. To: YertleTurtle, angelspawn (#1)
Maybe Neil and Angelspawn can help you develop a template.
Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/Latest |
||
|
[Home]
[Headlines]
[Latest Articles]
[Latest Comments]
[Post]
[Sign-in]
[Mail]
[Setup]
[Help]
|
||