USA honour a visually impaired man

Dan Thompson never has forgotten what the Illinois School for the Visually Impaired and its teachers and staff meant to him when he was trying to deal with losing his sight at age 5.

Thompson has spent much of his adult life trying to give back to the school and those in similar situations, including taking on some rather unusual pursuits.

Gov. Rod Blagojevich on Tuesday named Thompson as the latest recipient of the People Are Today's Heroes (PATH) Award for leadership and service as a teacher at ISVI.

"Dan Thompson has gone out of his way for over 30 years to help not only the visually impaired at ISVI, but also other individuals and organizations in the Jacksonville community and central Illinois," the governor said in a press release. "His courage and leadership make him one of today's heroes as well as an excellent role model for persons with disabilities and for all Illinoisans."
Thompson is an assistive technology educator at the school, from which he graduated in 1972. He returned to the school as a teacher in 1991, and in between and since, has a long history of assisting individuals and organizations.

Thompson, 54, was first employed by the Visually Handicapped Managers of the Illinois Vending Stand Program, where he participated in a number of "one-man fundraisers" to benefit not-for-profit organizations.

Included were a 55-mile walk from Peoria to Galesburg to benefit the Peoria Association for the Mentally Retarded, walking 60 miles from Peoria to Bloomington for the United Cerebral Palsy Association to benefit a special-needs camp and sitting on a flagpole for 17 days and 14 hours for the Midwest Special Olympics.

Later, he walked 250 miles from Quincy to Danville to raise money for the disaster relief fund set up for victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, D.C. In between, he wrote a book of poetry, "Life's Inner Secrets," with proceeds going to the Cerebral Palsy Foundation, and in 1978 established the Peoria "Care for Kids" organization.

During the 1980s, he became Illinois' first visually impaired individual to be employed as a Social Security determination adjudicator, but he says his dream always was to return to ISVI as a teacher.

He has received such honors as the Lincoln Academy Award given by Gov. James Thompson in 1985.

Kris Smith, assistant director with the state Department of Human Services, Division of Rehabilitation Services, presented the PATH Award to Dan Thompson at a ceremony in the school's auditorium Tuesday.

"Dan's involvement within the ISVI community and the Jacksonville community at large has enriched the lives of many students and Jacksonville citizens over the years," said Smith. "His inner motivation appears to be his determination to assist those in need and to make sure every student at ISVI receives the same quality educational experience and opportunity as their sighted peers."

Thompson said his association with the school and the city turned his life around.
"This is a very special place," he said. "I came from a pretty tough home life, and I attribute the school in helping me become what I am today. They stuck by me, and my wife has stuck by me through some difficult times. I received compassion, and it is exciting to share some of that with the students here.

"I want to continue teaching at least six more years because it's hard to believe this is so much a part of my heart. I feel whole when I'm here, so I guess I will go until they get tired of me."
Known as "Mr. T" to students, Thompson and his wife, Judy, also an ISVI graduate, have two children: Amy, 26, and Brandon, 21.

According to DHS spokesman Tom Green, the PATH Award was created by the governor's office in 2004 and has been given to "only a handful" of recipients.

ISVI Superintendent Richard Snowden said he and staff nominated Thompson for the award.
"Dan is a special person," Snowden said. "He is a good mentor and a good role model. The guy is a genius as far as technology goes. We have computers donated to us, and he rebuilds them so that every kid who graduates has a computer. We are very proud of him."

ISVI, founded in 1848, is in east Jacksonville. The school has 80 students and 130 staff members.