TOMI Magazine November 2012

WWW.THEKEVINLAUESTORY.COM

mentality every day in order to overcome what was considered impossible. Some of this hope was inspired from Philippians 4:13 from the Bible. I can do all things through God who strengthened me. I was born on 4/13.” If we all sat back and let ourselves be what someone thought we were then we all would be falling victim to what others perceive as ‘not good enough’. It’s not just you having to try… try again. It’s more. It’s you deciding that you won’t take no for an answer. And that you are not what they say you are. “ Maximize your potential and goals in order to be as successful as they can” - says Kevin. “I want to inspire a sense of perseverance even through the toughest of times in order to achieve something remarkable. I want a mes- sage to spread like wild fire. That anything is possible with a little time, passion, and faith. If you don’t believe in yourself, who is going to believe in you?” Words to live by. Let hate and bigotry be your motivation. “Never go a day in your life with an excuse” - says Kevin. “Whatever your disability may be, use it to your ad- vantage, not your disadvantage. You get the opportunity to push through a barrier bigger than most, and it’s not going to be easy, but you are capable. That’s just one benefit of be- ing a longshot” - Tonisha L. Johnson

INSPIRATION IN ALL FAIRNESS K EVIN LAUE

Handicap can be defined in so many ways. In today’s world, women getting paid less than their worth is a handicap. Not going to college because financially you don’t qualify is another to be considered. There are so many things one can point out that makes an underdog. So, why is the world so adamant on pointing out the difference for everyone to stop, stare and take notice? “I had to believe even if no one else did” - says Kevin Laue, star of the documentary A Longshot which chronicles Kevin’ life of pursuing a basketball career as a Division –1 player with only one hand. “I felt like no matter how hard I played there was never going to be a fare offer from a school. No coach was going to give me a fair chance to play because of my disability.” In all fairness, everyone falls short of something. How can one person or a group of decision-makers say what something is? It is not the failure of an organ or ability that is handicap. It is the minds of the people who see the glass half empty when in fact it is so totally full. “Perseverance became a daily ritu- al of mine. I needed to break free of a failures

50 NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.TOMIMAGAZINE.COM