A Real Hero

Recently this magazine featured its annual “Best Of” poll, giving readers an opportunity to vote for their favorites in various categories. One of those categories was “Best Local Hero.”

Much to my surprise, I was nominated in that category. The definition of a hero is a person admired for courage or noble qualities. I talk about sports for a living. I’m flattered, but I’m definitely no hero.

Let me tell you about a real hero [Fig. A]. A young man named Jeremy Poincenot, a 21 year old college student at San Diego whom I met in September. Jeremy is the World Blind Golf Champion. He had 20/20 vision until he was 19, when he suddenly began losing his sight. Diagnosed with a rare hereditary disease known as Leber’s hereditary optic neuropathy, Jeremy was legally blind within 2 months.

“It flipped my life upside down”, said Jeremy during a phone interview. “It was devastating. To be fully sighted and living life a certain way and then have life change that quickly … I thought I was living a nightmare.”

Jeremy compares his vision to a donut [Fig. B]. “I have the whole outside rim of that donut, the big circle. But the circle in the center of the donut is completely blurred out. I’m able to maneuver my eyes to see certain things, but since losing my sight, I’m no longer able to read, no longer able to drive, no longer able to distinguish faces.”

It should come as no surprise that a handsome, intelligent young man with his entire future in front of him would spiral into a deep depression for a couple of months. But thanks to a loving family and supportive college friends, Jeremy finally started to “see” things differently.

“After awhile I realized sulking about my situation isn’t going to help anyone, not me, not the people around me,” Jeremy explained. He decided he had to be more positive about his situation. He realized going about his daily life with a positive attitude would hopefully inspire and motivate those around him to be positive about their lives.

His mother was tenacious in researching Jeremy’s condition and looking for activities that he could enjoy despite his condition. She discovered blind golf. Previously a golfer with a handicap in the single digits, Jeremy thought he would never again enjoy the game he and his dad played regularly.

Blind golf changed all that. His dad went from being a friendly competitor to being his eyes on the course. “A lot of talking goes into it,” Jeremy explained. [Fig. C] “It’s kind of like a video game. [Fig. D] My dad will tell me this is a par four. They’ll tell me the yardage so I can kind of get in my head what I think it is and then they’ll point with their right arm where they want me to hit. I basically rest my chin on their shoulder and look where they’re pointing and try to imagine where I want to hit it. I just imagine that line, they tell me to move a little right or left, and when they say it’s good to go, I take a swing and hope for the best.”

Jeremy and his dad entered the World Blind Golf Championship in England in 2010 with the hopes of just having a good time. “After one day, we were just one shot back of two other competitors,” he said. “The second day we were tied for the lead. We went to a playoff and I wound up chipping in on the playoff hole to win.”

Now Jeremy goes around the country, speaking and holding golf clinics for the visually impaired. He worked with a group of East Texas school kids when he came to Tyler to play in a golf tournament to help PATH and the Lighthouse provide free eye exams, eyeglasses, and other help for those who can’t afford it.

For someone who was dealt such a difficult hand, Jeremy Poincenot has responded with incredible courage and maturity to not only to rise above his disability, but to motivate other visually impaired people to “see” their situation in a more positive light. Now that's a real hero in my book.

Bryan Houston is in his fifth decade in broadcasting, first as a music radio disc jockey, then as a play-by-play announcer, TV sportscaster and finally a TV news anchor in the East Texas area since 1991.

Now he’s returned to his roots. Sports and Radio.
Bryan is the sports director and host of Bryan Houston’s Sports Radio Live on 93.3 TALK FM, Monday through Friday from 3-6p.m.