While most people think of being blind as some kind of tragedy, I don’t always see it that way. My name is Cole Carper, and I have been legally blind since birth. I attended Arkansas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired until third grade, when I transferred to public school. After I learned basic skills, my parents felt it was best that I attend a traditional school that represented the real world. I now know this was the right move for me.

I’ve always been involved in activities that interest me such as mountain biking, snow and waterskiing, competitive swimming, cross-country, and track. I’ve found that people, if allowed, will limit me more than my blindness justifies. Pushing the limit is often met with surprise or questions about how I can do these activities. Sighted people will handicap me if I let them.

Early on, my family worked hard to find a sport in which my sister, also blind, and I could compete and excel with sighted peers. After discovering that ball sports were not my strong suit, I tried martial arts, and eventually found my home in the pool.

I started swimming in sixth grade. Then, swimming a single lap of the pool seemed a daunting task. From that point on, I started swimming almost daily to improve my ability. Through hard work and diligent practice, I have qualified for the state championship meet in all four years of high school. I am now best at the fifty-yard freestyle and the five-hundred-yard freestyle, the shortest and longest races in my high school league. I swim because I enjoy the competition but also because it allows me to educate people about the abilities of blind individuals. People are surprised to see the blind guy touch the wall before those who can see it.

This year I have grown my leadership skills as captain of my high school swimming team. While the team has been relatively small in the past, it has doubled in size through my constant recruiting efforts. As captain, I also worked to ensure students did not miss their races, helped coordinate transportation, and worked with inexperienced swimmers on technique. I believe my abilities as a blind swimmer and leader motivated my teammates.

I have been a committed member of my church youth group since sixth grade. This program has allowed me to serve on many mission trips: two to Kentucky, one to Guatemala, and many around Arkansas. On these trips, I learned how to use drills and other power tools to build and repair houses, roofs, and wheelchair ramps. In Guatemala, our team built an entire house from the concrete foundation to the electrical wiring. In Harlan, Kentucky, my group installed a tin roof for a family in need. I was able to work on the roof safely, which somewhat concerned my mom upon my return. For some tasks, like hammering and measuring, I had to adapt the standard method, and they took me slightly longer to complete—but complete them I did.

I have been on the church youth group leadership team for five years and am currently the president. The team’s purpose is to plan events, fundraisers, and volunteer opportunities for students. As president, I’ve collected information from members for trip planning and decision-making. I’ve also created announcements for events and recruited students for service projects.

These interactions with sighted people have helped me educate others about what it means to be legally blind. People are constantly surprised that I can cook, do handiwork, and even do my schoolwork without assistance. Their surprise is surprising to me because these skills, or adaptations, have always seemed natural to me.

Through my activities and experiences, I’ve learned the importance of self-advocacy and independence. My vision to become a successful aerospace engineer is not limited by my limited vision. I know that I have to work hard and be well-educated to achieve this goal.

Congratulations to Cole for being one of the thirty finalists of the 2024 National Federation of the Blind Scholarship Program. The application for the 2025 scholarship program is open now until March 31.