Shavane Daley using challenges as stepping stones

January 22, 2021
Shavane Daley and his daughter, Achaeya.
Shavane Daley and his daughter, Achaeya.

Shavane Daley has had to overcome challenges all his life. Having to navigate his way after losing his sight as a child, he thought the deck was stacked against him.

Today, he looks back at some of what he has managed to accomplish in spite of it all.

Daley, who describes himself as a proud father and family man, is the holder of a Master's degree in Cultural Studies, and a Bachelor's in Psychology with a minor in Entertainment and Cultural Enterprise Management. He said that he is blessed to have the support of a partner and family at large.

Daley is also the founder of the Entertainment Trail, a company which specialises in music production, promotion, content writing and graphics services and has been in operation since 2013.

Added to his list of involvement is being a board member and player of the Jamaica Visual Impaired Cricket Association and a director of the Jamaica Society For the Blind.

Daley, who doesn't think limits, said: "You have to believe in yourself. Find something to motivate you and move on. You have to remind yourself that you have to stand up and rise above for you and once you motivate yourself and believe then you are without limits."

Commenting on his journey, Daley said his main challenge growing up was dealing with moving from little sight to no sight at all.

"While in school I struggled to see the board clearly, and that's when my parents realised and moved me to the Salvation Army School for the Blind in Kingston," he shared.

GREAT SUPPORT

Life improved for Daley after he left the institution for Jamaica College (JC). He said that he got great support from both the student and administrative body while attending JC.

Daley matriculated to the University of the West Indies, Mona, where he said he had access to the Office for Special Student Services, which provides volunteers to aid students with disability in their academic pursuits such as doing research and reading printed text.

His challenges there were mainly financial ones - however, thanks to friends, family members, grants and scholarships, jobs on campus and support of JC Old Boys, he made it through.

Looking back, Daley said he has come a long way from the youth who thought the odds were against him as a person with disability.

"I stay afloat, confident and determined to break bounds because of my own objective to be successful and provide for my family. I also feed on the drive I get from seeing other persons with disability excelling," he said.

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