Cindy Watson - Out of Darkness. The Jeff Healey Story

Grade 8 Transition Year

Grade 8 was a tough year for Jeff, a transition year. His parents decided to transfer him back to regular school, so he joined his younger sisters at Park Lawn Junior and Middle School for his last year of elementary education. Many of the kids didnt understand him, didnt accept him, and targeted him because he was different. He was blind. He was smart. And he was musically talented.

It was a lonely year for Jeff. Pulled away from familiar routines, surroundings, and friends he had made over the past seven years, he was tossed into an environment where he was singled out and tormented. Jeff was followed home from school, taunted, tripped, and beaten up while his younger sisters looked on helplessly or tried without luck to intervene. I wonder what those bullies thought when Jeffs albums went platinum?

Jeff didnt want to be treated differently. Even when he finally fought back at Park Lawn, after taking months of bullying, Jeff was upset that the instigator was punished, but he wasnt.

I was in the fight, too, he said at the time. Why would he get punished and not me? Dont treat me any different because of who I am.

His constant companions during that rough year were his two pet guinea pigs, Archie and Munchie.

They were the loves of his life, says his sister, Laura. Its sad to say, but I think they were his best friends at one point, because of that transition from the blind school to the sighted school. Munchie would lie on the bed with him, and theyd just listen to music. When Munchie died, Jeff was devastated.

It seems we humans could learn a lot from our animal friends about unquestioning acceptance, love, and loyalty.

Things to Think About

Have you ever picked on someone because he or she was different? Try to think of a time when you might have hurt someone who didnt deserve it. Can you replay the incident in your mind? Bring back as many details as you can about what you said or did and how the person reacted. Then try to imagine yourself in that persons shoes. Relive the entire scene, but with yourself cast as the victim. What would your reaction have been? Now consider writing an Im sorry note or letter to the person. Or maybe go out of your way to do something special for him or her.

High School

Grade 9 was easier for Jeff. He started at Etobicoke Collegiate Institute with the other local Grade Niners. Jeff was still the only blind kid in the school, but he had his music. It was like communicating in another language. Besides, he had his guitar, a shield between him and the world.

People still werent too sure of him, says Laura, but then they found out, Wow, this guy can really play music. They accepted him better.

Not worried about being part of the in crowd, Jeff didnt care about following the fashion trends of the day. He hung out with people who interested him, not caring if others thought they were quirky. He was never a follower. If people didnt get him or didnt think he fit in to their pigeonholed categories, he wasnt going to lose any sleep over it. He had his music.

Jeff got involved in every music program he could, playing lead guitar in the band for dramatic musical productions (school plays), performing in the Etobicoke Collegiate school band, playing in a school jazz band, and competing in the Canadian Stage Band Festival. He was focused on his music; he was intense.

Every day, every chance he got, he was playing guitar, says his father. The music was his, and thats what he concentrated on. The music really took over.

Not surprisingly, Jeff won the Board of Education Award for Excellence in Music at Etobicoke Collegiate. And he blew everyone away when, at only fourteen, he acted as the principal music specialist for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), with a weekly radio broadcast in which he aired vintage selections from his 78 rpm album collection.