Student lives life in silence, dreams big
Published: Sunday, November 15, 2009
Updated: Sunday, November 15, 2009
 "Photo: Karl Anderson")
Karl Anderson
Derek Downie, a senior chemistry major from El Paso, uses sign language to communicate during an interview.
The world Derek Downie has come to know is shrouded by silence. He is incapable of verbal communication. And yet, he remains unfazed.
Deaf since age 7, he refuses to allow his disability to hold him back.
The senior chemistry major plans to enter the pharmaceutical field after graduation and said he hopes to eventually be accepted into medical school.
“I never see myself as disabled or challenged because of my hearing loss,” the El Paso native said by typing on a computer. “I just cannot hear, and that’s as simple as it is. It does not stop me from doing whatever things I want to do.”
And that is exactly what he does.
With the help of his best friend, Robert Morrison, Downie discovered his passion in hunting.
Morrison said he sent Downie a few hunting videos as well as venison sausage last year. His friend instantly fell in love.
“He absolutely went bonkers,” Morrison said with a smile. “He text me all these questions like, ‘Where can I get a gun?’ and, ‘Do I need a license?’ I was excited for his enthusiasm but also sad because I did not have a ranch for us to hunt on.”
During Fall Break 2009, the two drove eight hours to the ranch near Carrizo Springs. After pitching a tent, the two companions laid under the twinkling sky in anticipation of the day to come.
Morning came, and Downie, Morrison and the landowner, Tom Luffel, were perched in the blind.
“While we were up there, Tom told me about a 14-point buck that had gotten old and was weighing down the herd. He asked if Derek would want it,” Morrison said. “Most hunters never get the chance to see one of those in the wild let alone shoot it. So, I was like, ‘Yeah, definitely.’”
Uncertainty was etched across Downie’s face as his friends attempted to explain what to aim for and what to avoid. Yet after a few hours, the majestic buck never offered a shot.
“We went back and did some practice drills,” Morrison said. “I would give him a thumbs-up, and he would have 15 seconds to get lined-up, load and take a shot, then another. They were efficiency drills, and he was hitting dead on. We were all excited and confident.”
The trio “took a quick siesta,” and then was off for a second try. But back in the blind, conditions had changed. The wind had switched directions, now blowing from behind the hunters, fanning their scent out to the animals which immediately became skittish.
“It was frustrating, but I looked over to the left and saw these points, and sure enough that was the deer,” he said. “So we played little musical-chairs so Derek would be lined-up on this deer.
“After 30 minutes or so, it finally offered Derek a shot. He took it, and the buck disappeared. Derek then turned around and was smiling ear to ear, he felt like he made a good shot.”
The three waited in the blind to allow time for the buck to fall.
“Surprisingly, it was one of the most calm 40 minute waits I’ve ever had in a deer blind,” Morrison said. “We were all very relieved and excited.”
And sure enough, after following the deer’s trail, Downie had successfully shot down the massive buck. He did not allow his lack of hearing to inhibit him.
Morrison’s friendship with Downie has shown him that what people may view as a restraining disability is nothing more than a minor inconvenience.
“He is incredibly inspirational, especially his goals of attending medical school,”
Morrison said. “When I first heard about his goal, I thought, ‘How is that possible?’ And then I had to stop myself and think, ‘Who am I to say he can’t?’
“I’m sure everybody he met thought there was no way this kid can make a contribution in anyway: He can’t communicate in the way society says he has to communicate. But he is an incredible inspiration to me in setting my own personal goals and living out my life without excuse.”
According to his mother, Esther Downie, when Derek was born, portions of his face were deformed and he had a cleft palate. These deformities eventually caused multiple ear infections, which led to his loss of hearing.
And even as a child, he was just as optimistic as he is today, Esther Downie said. Through his numerous doctor’s visits, he discovered where he wanted his future to take him.
“One day, he was about 6 years old, we were sitting in a doctor’s office and he saw a lot of children crying,” she said. “He turned around and looked up at me, then signed, ‘Mom, when I grow up I want to be a doctor, but I’m not going to make my patients cry. I’m going to help them,’”
Then every year after that day, he would count down the years until he was a step closer to his goal.
“He would say, ‘OK mom, only 10 more years, then I graduate college and get to be a doctor,’ and the next year, ‘Only nine more years, mom,’ and so on,” Esther Downie said.
A fiery passion was lit in his heart as a young boy, and although his mother watched him struggle at times, she said the flame never went out.
“We just call him a medical child,” Esther Downie said with a laugh.
Derek Downie has found a home at Tech, with friends and professors who go to great lengths to be able to communicate with him. He does not let being deaf prevent him from communicating with other people on campus, and said he can usually rely on lip reading and minimal signing. His last resort is pen and paper, but he rarely has difficulty.
“I never think that I had a communication barrier,” Derek Downie said. “To be honest, I have barely experienced any communication barrier in my whole life. I taught myself to be independent and depend on myself to make the communication work effectively between students and myself.”
At age 27, Derek Downie has lived his life to its fullest, and shows no sign of letting up.
“I have done many unimaginable things in my life,” he said. “That’s why I do not believe to see myself as disabled or challenged because of my hearing loss,” he said. “How the heck can hearing loss be a part of disability when it has nothing to do with mental or physical functions?”
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