Donna Hill

Musician and Head of Media Relations , National Federation of the Blind

Many women today are feeling victimized at mid-life because of job losses, divorce, health issues and more. Although your life may never be the same…maybe it could be even better than before these challenges occurred.

Donna Hill’s story is one of believing…in herself, in her music, in others. I hope that Donna will inspire you as much, during this transitional time in our nation and our lives, as she did me. She has strong messages to share and she has never accepted that there are challenges that she cannot overcome. There is no one like Donna!

The Early Years

Donna comes from a stubborn, working-class family. Her father was a postal clerk with the railroad and her mother a factory worker. Born with a severe form of Retinitis Pigmentosa she was already nearly blind. Luckily from a very young age, her family hammered into her that she could do anything she wanted to do. She had a strong personality that got her into some scrapes but served her well through the years. She always had the sense that her gift to the world would come through music.

Over and over again through her school years she was told by many, “You won’t be able to go to college, you will never marry, and you will never be able to support yourself or live on your own. When she was small she thought they were right. But, she says she “did not WANT them to be right!”

Stubborn (perseverance) is good

When she was in 2nd grade, Donna was a huge fan of the Lawrence Welk show. She especially loved the accordion and wanted one desperately. Her parents wishing to encourage her in her music but fearing that she was just too small to be able to handle an accordion bought her a piano instead. She wasn’t thrilled with this substitution but forged ahead anyway…her music demanded to get out! All the while her vision was continuing to degrade, and by the time she was 12 she could no longer read the notes. At 14, she asked for a guitar, taught herself to play, memorized the music, and started to write her own.

Accept helpful tools

Sometimes, in order to get what you dream of, you have to accept the tools that can help you get there. After Donna graduated from college (yes she did!) she then made the decision to learn Braille and get her first Guide Dog. It opened up her life substantially.

Go for It!

She started her career as a working musician by becoming a street performer at Suburban Station, a regional railway hub in center city Philadelphia. She did this for 13 years, made a living and as a result of garnering so much press she was often offered other performing work. She started to cut her own albums and, contrary to those early naysayers, she got married too!

Another challenge

At 40, while recording her 3rd CD and planning to move to Nashville with her husband, Donna got the diagnosis all women fear. She had breast cancer. Although her mammogram was negative, a mass could be felt and the doctor said it had to come out.

After she healed and completed her album, she detected another lump. She needed another mastectomy, but escaped radiation this time around.

When a dream collapses, find a new one

When she and her husband’s economic situation changed dramatically, they were unable to move to Nashville, as planned, and Donna was crushed. She had to give up that dream! Luckily they had property in the Endless Mountains in Pennsylvania and they were able to build a home.

Being in the country was healing with its slower pace, better air and less stress. But, city life more easily allows a blind person to be independent due to the many services available. It took Donna quite a while to come to terms with her new life. But, the fact was that she could still be quite independent and do what she wanted. After all, she had always dreamed of “living in the country!”

Do what you’ve been avoiding

Although Donna’s brother (born with the same condition) had embraced all the technologies developed for the blind, Donna had resisted.

Now was the time to learn how to use the computer. The Bureau of Blindness & Visual Services sent her to a 4-week program to learn to use specialized tools on the computer. She spent hours on her own, outside of class and although it was scary and confusing, it took her less than one year to master!

Be “Super” at what you do

Donna always felt the need to be “Super Blind Person” to negate the many negative messages she had received throughout her life. She has boundless energy, stamina, and a compelling desire to succeed and be of service.

She continues to write her music and perform, is working on the children’s fantasy novel, and in July of 2008 became the Head of Media Relations for the Performing Arts Division of the National Federation of the Blind! Way to go Donna!

I think you will agree that Donna is an amazing and inspiring woman and I hope that through her story of perseverance you will find the encouragement and motivation to get yourself through these troubled times.
Donna has kindly written the following tips for just for you. Thank you Donna!!

Donna’s Tips for Troubled Times:

Yes, Virginia, it’s a fire!

Fire burns.  You know that. You don’t have to check every new flame, approaching it from all possible directions to prove that.  My guess is that you, like many of us, are spending quite a lot of time and energy trying to convince yourself of something you already know, something no one is arguing with you about.  Why? What exactly do all those hours recounting your problems accomplish?  Ask yourself, “Don’t I believe that this has been awful?”  If you do believe it, why do you need to constantly come up with new and better proof?  Mourning, grieving, feeling sad, cheated or many other miserable things are normal, appropriate and healthy responses to problems.  But, don’t allow them to be your only response.  Once you have established the parameters of your misery, start doing something else. 

A Fortune Teller?  You?

So, you’ve lost something or someone and you’re sure you’ll never be happy again.  Really?  Since when have you been such a great fortune teller?  Look back on your life.  Aren’t you already doing lots of things that you were convinced that you could never do?  My mother was convinced she could never drive.  She had evidence.  She got a learner’s permit a few times and took lessons and flunked several tests.  But, her evidence had a little piece of truth inside it that she didn’t recognize until she was almost 50.  She simply hadn’t been able to drive up to that point.  Though she never had an interest in going cross country or racing, she did earn her driver’s license.  The point is that in listening to that part of you that says, “I can’t” or “I’ll never be able to …” you are putting your trust in a rather unreliable source.

Imagination, a Game of Hide & Seek

You say you can’t imagine recovering from this loss, can’t imagine life without …, but how much faith do you really want to put in your current lack of imagination?  First of all, imagination doesn’t do its finest work when you’re down.  So, you can’t imagine. Who cares about that now?  Imagination will come along as you begin to do other things.  You’re not going to will yourself to come up with a brand new idea.  That’s not how imagination works.  It’s precisely because imagination is not a rational, predictable process that it is so wonderful.  Holding to the truth of your current lack of insight only blocks the process. 

Get to Know Your Inner Struggler

You already know how to teach yourself to regroup, recover and rejoice.  Don’t look at me “like that,” it’s true.  If you’ve been listening to those folks who say, “I never doubted it for a moment,” it’s time to step back and get out the salt shaker.  Recovering from a loss is never a smooth process.  People fall, pick themselves up, fall again and get up again.  They grieve, get frustrated, angry and discouraged.  You may not think you know how to do this, but you’ve already done it a thousand times.  It’s exactly what happened when you were a kid learning to walk, tie your shoes, thread a needle or multiply six times seven.  Think about all the things you weren’t able to do but eventually mastered.  Behind them all is your inner struggler.  She should have won your respect and confidence by now, but if you still aren’t comfortable putting this in her hands, it’s time to cozy up. 

The Top of the Heap

Do you still want to be like everybody else?  Most of the time, most people discount their ability to change.  They say, “You can’t fight city hall.”  They look at people who are trying to do something that no one else has managed to do and say, “You’re wasting your time.”  They quit learning when they leave school and stop dreaming when they fail a few times.  History is the story of the people who fought city hall and won.  Our lives are full of things that happened because someone, in the face of plenty of ridicule,  refused to act like they believed that humans would never fly, that light bulbs would never be affordable, that there’s only so much corn you can grow in an acre, that they were too old, too sick, too poor, too insignificant. Some people defy the odds and win.  Someone is going to come out of this all right, why shouldn’t that someone be you?

To contact Donna, look under Cabinet Posts, Head of Media Relations at http://www.padnfb.org/contact.html

To purchase her CD or hear clips from “The Last Straw” visit http://cdbaby.com/cd/donnahill