Kevin Gordon acknowledges that life is full of challenges and obstacles. But the 17-year-old Thornton High School graduate is not intimidated by those thoughts. In fact he relishes the opportunity to confrontdifficult situations.
"Sometimes the things we think are the hardest are not that difficult at all," he wrote in one of his college entrance essays, explaining how he did not let his hearing loss affect his academics.
He now attends Mercy College and is excited to discover new experiences and friends. It is believed Kevin was born with hearing loss. It was not discovered until he was enrolled in school in kindergarten and given a hearing exam. When his hearing loss was discovered there was a concern that he would suffer academically or that children would tease him. But neither of those worries came to fruition.
"My attitude is, I'm not going to use my hearing loss as an excuse," he said. "If you work for it you can achieve it. It is victory over this obstacle that gives me confidence."
Kevin took Advanced Placement courses at Thornton High School, was a member of several school clubs, and volunteers at a local soup kitchen and the Mount Vernon Public Library. He spent the last summer volunteering for Congressman Eliot Engel at the National Democratic Headquarters.
Kevin's level of hearing loss is mild to moderate. With his hearing aid the loss is mild, which is a little better but Kevin still has to work to piece together conversations sometimes. With the hearing aid the sounds he hears are somewhat muffled. In college he will be responsible for the technology needed for his courses. True to form Kevin is not worried. He wants to pursue design and animation. He has always liked to draw and has tremendous talent.
His attitude on life is similar to the one he takes while working on an art project. He keeps on adding little details and finishing touches all the while telling himself "there is no 'I'm finished' there is only 'I can do better.'"
