Legally Blind Father Of 5 Seeks Government Grant For Concrete Business

by Jose
(Corona, CA, USA)

I am 42 years old and my wife is 33. We're looking for a government grant to build a business to help provide a better family life.

We have 5 children altogether. There are 2 girls of my own, ages 24 and 18. Three are my wife's from a previous marriage, a boy 16 and two girls 10 and 9.

I was born with Congenital Nystagmus. With this condition, my eyes move together as they oscillate (swing like a pendulum).

Nystagmus most commonly causes the eyes to look involuntarily from side to side in a rapid swinging motion rather than fixed on an object or person.

All forms of Nystagmus are involuntary, meaning you can't control your eyes and worsens with tiredness or stress.

Some people with Nystagmus have so many vision problems they are considered legally blind like me.

To see better I have to turn my head and lock my eyes into what's called the "null point." It's a certain head angle that makes my eyes move the least, thus stabilizing the image for better vision.

My condition happens to one out of several thousand born every year. Having Congenital Nystagmus I must deal with the personal and social consequences of this difference.

Nystagmus affects nearly every aspect of my life, including how I relate to other people, educational and work opportunities as well as my self-image.

The best way I can describe how I see in the world is to take a video recorder that is slightly out of focus and press record. Move the recorder in a rapid side-to-side motion for about 3 minutes.

When you're done watch the video. That is how I see all the time. Because even when my head is still, my eyes are not.

With my disability I could not hold down a job. I lived in one town with my parents my whole life.

When I was 35 my parents sold their home and moved 3 cities over, which forced me to find ways to venture for myself.

I ended up living in a small tent in the local hills in my hometown until a friend of mine said that I could pitch my tent up in the backyard of his home till I could get back up on my feet.

Soon after that, I met my wife, who at the time was just my friend. She was helping me with my disability and had hardships of her own due to her recent divorce and loss of her job.

Despite those hardships she moved into the tent with me. With us living in the tent we were unable to have her kids live with us.

A year later my SSI was approved where still we were only able to rent a small room for the two of us. It's been 3 years since then and we are still struggling.

My wife has still not been able to find a job in today's economy.

Even with the little money that I get from SSI we haven't been able to purchase a vehicle to do important family things like going to get the kids to stay for a weekend or trips to see my family that we can't do on public transportation.

From the time I was of legal age to work, I tried to get and keep jobs. I would manage for a while, but eventually my disability would conquer and I would lose my job.

Then sometimes more often than not the job I would apply would require an eye exam, which I was unable to pass with or without the use of my glasses.

So after years of being unsuccessful at holding down a job, I applied for SSDI for the first time and was denied.

I was a little discouraged but again I tried to find another job where again I was laid off due to my disability.

I applied for SSDI a second time and learned that due to being unable to hold down a job I was unable to earn enough work credits that was required for me to collect it.

Eventually it was all worked out and I was able to collect just SSI which is a lot less than SSDI and is way less than it takes for our family to make ends meet.

I am looking for a Small Business Grant to supplement my income by starting my own business where I can give my family the things that every family deserves the opportunity to have.

As well, I'd have a chance to provide a few much-needed jobs to some families that need the work in my small home town in hopes to try and give a little back to my community.

The business I would like to start is Custom Concrete Engraving. I have done a lot of research and have learned that there is a great market for this kind of business out there.

The grant would be used to purchase tools necessary to open and start as well as to have business cards and flyers made for advertising purposes.

We also have many friends in the concrete business as well as general contracting friends that would help with such by word of mouth.