Stories & Achievements: Kelvin’s Story
Kelvin’s story: A life less ordinary
Life changed for Kelvin when he lost his sight in an accident two years ago. Until then he had done some amazing things.
“I’ve worked as a commercial pilot flying A300 cargo planes, a professional photographer for Cosmo and Clio, a heavy vehicle driving instructor, an engineer and more. I’ve done car racing, horse dressage and jumping, made 48 skydive jumps - but would love to have got to 50. I was supposed to get my bike licence the year of my accident, but that didn’t happen”.
That’s all just the tip of the iceberg for a man who is used to overcoming obstacles to succeed in life. "I suffered a serious injury while working when a heavy object landed on my head, which severely impacted my sight. I can only distinguish dark and light but not much else. I also have ongoing pain issues.”
When the opportunity came to go sailing Kelvin didn’t let his lack of sight and constant headaches stop him, thanks to Sailability NSW at Belmont 16 Footers. “I’ve been sailing since I was 16, and it’s great to be back on the water”.
It’s clear that the last two years haven’t been easy when, at one point he hit a new low, “I felt like it was the first time I’d failed at anything” when he fell after walking into the back of a bus because of poor vision. But Kelvin has picked himself up and his enthusiasm and positive attitude are both admirable and infectious. “Today was a pleasure, it was exhilarating to be out sailing again and to learn to do things by myself.”
Now teamed up with Headstart support buddy Abby for his future sailing sessions, Kelvin says “She’s energetic, she’s willing to go places to try things. That’s why they’ve teamed me up yeah it’s good”. But that’s not all: “I’d also like to do some rock climbing in future. One of my main goals is to open Australia’s first blind bed and breakfast, plus aquaponics and fish farming. I also want to build a seven and a quarter inch gauge train track on my property, like the one down at Edgeworth. Tunneling through the 130m hill is the main challenge”. Will Kelvin succeed? We think so!
“The glass is always half full. That’s how I look at everything. I’m choosing to be an optimist, because if I’m not what’s it going to do for me?
- Kelvin”
