We Were Relentless

Book excerpt: West Bloomfield, MI Life for the able-bodied is difficult enough. There are confusing individual choices to make, the usual minefield of relationships, financial uncertainty, and other challenges of the real world. Imagine how much more difficult it would be for those who have to live with disabilities such as needing a wheelchair to get around, or being blind, or deaf. Author Martin J. Levin shares with readers an inspiring and stirring account of his son's struggles and triumphs in WE WERE RELENTLESS: A Family's Journey to Overcome Disability. Jordan Levin's life started out as a perilous and suspenseful adventure for his parents. Born three months premature, he was so small that he weighed only 31 ounces with tiny hands the size of a man's fingernail. He had to have a series of operations to correct conditions that threatened his grip on life. But hang on he did. And when it seemed that everything would turn out fine, Jordan was diagnosed as being profoundly deaf he could hear sounds with frequencies below a certain threshold, but above that and he was at a loss. Amazingly, even before the diagnosis, young Jordan had the uncanny innate ability to lip-read. So, with the courage and foresight of his parents who were determined to raise him as normally as possible, he learned how to speak, graduated with a B.A. from Michigan State University, and grew up to become a successful and confident man. Later, he would embark on a career as a motivational speaker and personal trainer. More than a fascinating story of a person's triumph over disability, WE WERE RELENTLESS: A Family's Journey to Overcome Disability is also a touching account about a father's and mother's love for their son and how they encouraged him every step of the way to be all that he could be. For more information, log on to www.wewererelentless.com.