A Testimony of an Overcomer

There are few things more devastating to a child's fragile self-esteem than being humiliated before classmates and called a "dummy" by friends, teachers, and even family members. But millions of bright, sensitive, learning disabled children live this nightmare everyday - clinging to the hope that one day, they might achieve their life goals. Everyone has a turning point in their life. For me, it came through a newly discovered faith in God and one special teacher who helped me to realize that I had strength to overcome incredible odds including:

• A dysfunctional family environment
• A paralyzing learning disability
• Severe stuttering

Once encouraged and made to feel important, my natural abilities blossomed, and I progressed from being unable to read aloud, to becoming an honor student and winning speech tournaments.

"Our students were impressed with your sincerity and got a sense that you care about them as people. As a speaker, you are one of the best of the 450 we have had. You made them aware of the plight experienced by the underdog in our classroom. Hopefully, they will extend a helping hand rather than a taunt to the kid who doesn't fit into the mainstream.... We all learned a most powerful lesson in the resiliency of the human spirit." - Larry Crawford, High School Principal Lordstown, Ohio.

Today, Lonnie J. Clinkscale, MBA, is an accomplished speaker, author, and licensed minister. His life story has been written about in the American Academy of Pediatric Medicine. He has been a guest on the 700 Club, Trinity Broadcasting Network, National Empowerment TV, KET Public Broadcasting, World, a national publication for learning disabilities, and CBS sharing his testimony message of hope. He and his wife, Dawn, live in Louisville, Kentucky.