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“A lot of persons wonder how could a blind women teach someone how to read … what she did was ask my Aunt to write the letters of the alphabet on cardboard and ask my Aunt to teach me the letters……”
An effervescent personality, outspoken, determined and a passion to succeed these are the words to describe Khohane Blake, a final year Optometry student at the University of Guyana.
The journey to this point has not always been a smooth one. Born in the rural community of New Market in the Southern Parish of St. Elizabeth, Jamaica, Khohane’s story is one of overcoming just about every obstacle-and there were many. She grew up in an extended family, with her mother being the sole provider, however she was surrounded by a brother, grandparents, her aunt and cousins. There was one thing that made her family unique in the quiet community, Khohane’s mother, Racquel Adams was blind.
“I don’t know what it’s like to see my mother with sight. She got blind when I was about 3, I have one very faded memory of her with sight, I can recall seeing her coming through the gate with a bag. Her blindness did not bother us, my mother was our sole caretaker and giver and she was like any other mother,she cooked, washed, cleaned and ironed. She was our sole caretaker and giver, she was like any other mother, she cooked, washed, cleaned and ironed.”
Khohane’s childhood was pretty normal, but not everyone saw it that way, there were those who were surprised that Racquel Adams mastered a multitude of tasks, from gardening to cooking. “If we came in one evening and there was no food we would wonder what was wrong, because she would always cook, and if she had to go somewhere she would make sure there was food … it was a very normal life.”
Racquel Adams was born fully sighted but a mysterious illness robbed her of her vision. “She woke up one morning and couldn’t see the light bulb, she went to the Ophthalmologist and he gave her a letter to go to the Cornwall Regional Hospital (in western Jamaica), but by the end of the day she lost complete sight in one eye, and the following week, the vision in the other eye went away. She spent six months in Hospital and everyone tried to find out what was wrong ….” said Khohane Despite the unexpected twist of fate in the life of Racquel Adams, nothing stopped her. With her determination, she even taught a young Khohane to read and by age 6, Khohane’s reading ability surpassed those her age.
“A lot of persons wondered how could a woman who is blind teach someone how to read … what she did was ask my Aunt to write the letters of the alphabet on cardboard and ask my aunt to teach me the letters. Then my Mother would say, when you see words spell them. So if I saw “C-AT” I would was ask Mommy what is this word – she would tell me its CAT and said anywhere you go in the world and see “C-A-T”, it’s still cat. With that foundation, by the age of six, I was reading like a Grade Three student” Throughout her early years in school, Khohane’s mother was constantly by her side. “She was there along the way, when we had to study, she was sit up with us and come in with snacks in the middle of the night.”
At age 12 she passed the Common Entrance – an examination taken by children to transition from Primary to Secondary School. “My mother was there along the way, when we had to study she would sit up with us …like any other mother she would come with snacks in the middle of the night”.
Mother’s death
While in High School as Khohane prepared to sit exams, her mother died from a mysterious illness. Khohane was 17. “I have an Aunt who has always been very supportive she took us in – my brother and I. She became our second mother. She pushed and encouraged me saying there was no way she would watch me fail. At the end of the school year I passed all of my courses.”
Have successfully completed High School, a decision need to be made concerning her future but Khohane had no interest in returning to school and took a year off and worked. “So for the whole year I worked – I found a job in an Auto Shop. So now I know a lot about auto parts!”
University of the West Indies
To Khohane’s reluctance, her Aunt insisted that discontinuing her education was not an option. As a result applications were sent off to Colleges across the island. “I said Auntie I don’t think this is very feasible – I didn’t want to be too dependent on you or anyone else. But she insisted that I apply to UWI (University of the West Indies). Do you know what happened ? I got through to UWI , but they didn’t call me to say I was accepted , they called her! I will never forget, I was at work when my Aunt called and told me to pack my bags because we were going to Kingston!”
Khohane moved onto the Mona Campus of the University of the West Indies as a student of Economics but the road ahead was far from easy. The lack of funds took a toll on her and in her second year, she was faced with one of the hardest decisions of her life when she walked away from the University into an unknown future. “It was so very very hard for my Aunt to support me financially. I did not know what was ahead but I told her that I would do something that would make her proud and me proud and my mother proud.”
At this turning point in her life, the Caribbean Council for the Blind (CCB), came into the picture. “As I contemplated my future, I remembered that my mother was rehabilitated by this lady by the name of Audryln Lewis. I contacted her and she encouraged me to tell CCB my story. So I wrote a letter to the CEO – Mr. Arvel Grant and almost immediately I got a response! Mr. Grant asked me what I wanted to do, I told him I wanted to do something in Health, I really wasn’t interested in Economics. He asked if I was interested in the Refractionist Course atthe University of Guyana and I said okay and jumped at the opportunity!”
The University of Guyana
Khohane now saw the light at the end of a long dark tunnel and with great anticipation left for Guyana. “I came and did it and I liked it, because I liked it I did well in it, after that he offered me a scholarship to do Optometry, he told me it was a lot more advanced. And I really like it, the work is hard, it is not easy but I put extra effort in it . So here I am.“
Another significant development took place while in Guyana in that she suddenly realized how very special her mother was “I realized that it wasn’t easy for someone who was visually impaired to care for small children. I realized her drive and how special she was.”
Now a final year Optometry Student, she is proud of what she has achieved. “My mother would be so proud of us, not just me but my brother and a young cousin she helped to bring up. She would be so proud of us, at times we would sit and say, only if mommy was here to see us now. We know she would be so happy, nothing would steal her joy.”
“I’m happy I told them my story. When I told them , I got a scholarship to do what I want to do,not just anything, but to help someone who is visually impaired.Somebody who will need this service and will probably be a mother to a child or a brother or a sister and it could make a difference in their lives, like how they (CCB) made a difference in my life.”
From the rural community of New Market in Jamaica, to the halls of the University of Guyana, Khohane Blake is on a mission, one of helping the Caribbean Council for the Blind to fulfill its mandate of “Preventing blindiness and visual impairment while restoring sight and creating opportunities for persons whose sight cannot be restored”.