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Home My WebLink AboutTimes Advocate, 1998-07-08, Page 21Storm warning Lucky break. Betty Bates of 244 Main_ St. in Lucan stands in front of about a third of an old treQ that was knocked to the ground' during last week's ,severe thunderstorms that swept through the area. The fallen tree barely missed the house • and luckily its branches fell around a young spuce tree. it happened at 4:10 a.m. (Tuesday morning)," "Bates said with certainty since that's when her clocks stopped. '7t took the hydro out. 1 don't know how it missed the house." Power was restored to Bates abode at -about noon qn Tuesday.. 1 Bailymote man overcomes illiteracy Robert Grimminck has completed a book about his life .By Katherine Harding T -A (?eporter BALLYMOTE - It took a per- sonal tragedy on March 10. 1992 to-_ changtr" ,Roberi,..,GFimminck's life Dreyer. - • Until then Grimminck was hid- ing.an embarrassing andpainful se- cret — he had lived half his life as a functional. illiterate. ' . The Whalens Corner native,and father of live boys- learned to hide then bang I was gone:" - his secret well. Since that. "awakening" Grim He relegated himself to factory ininck has gone onto achieve scho- work and he even once quit •a job as lastic success. He reccivcd top a quality. controller a Dashwood grades at the Centre for Lifelong Industries Ltd. when hp sensed his Learning and was the valedictorian `boss knew he couldn't read. ' for hit graduating class. He then "After the incident at Dashwood . went on to Fanshawe College -'Industries i did - where- he receive a ' some soul search- four year degree in ing and decided that 1 always - would be a factory worker," said Grimminck. "i never -wanted to' go ' *back into the cm- harrassincnt of an' office job again." Then. on that t -a teful day- in 1992, tragedy `,struck and Grim- minck Was se- 4'iously injured while on the. job at . Hunt Windows -in London.. • His future Looked grim. Wilma de Rond. - "She -started to show me things and all of a `sudden things started clicking," he said. "I think it was. because it was explained clearly to me all of a sudden) started to. leant things: "1 can't-deseribe it...it was like a new awakening and she . had cracked open my prison," he said. "All it took was for. Wilma to pay special attention to my problem and "1 was -instrumental in changing a 'privilege into a law that guar- anteed that all adults bake the right to. a high school diploma," he beamed. Grinuuinck is even more proud of his new lound ithility to. write: - He enjoys writing _poetry : and short- stories and he recently. com- pleted a book. aha ur his lite entitled To Uream'A Different Dream --- A Personal Journey • Through Con- - Uniting Education. The book -which will include some of his poetry will he pub- lished by hisown publishing com- pany, Folker Press. . • "It's ironic really. The thing that 1 whs most scared of in the first hall of my life was reading 'and 'math —, and now I'm an author," he said. "What I once feared' the' most. is -now the: thing .I Iain . from the most." • . - t , - "1 think that if -my life holds any lile lessons itis that you should for • low your dreams while staking the right choices." he said. "'You should be aware of what' direction your choices will take you." - Grimminck plans to.pro note his, book this fall during a free lecture series he:will.givc on his life., "Before when 1'd give lectures people would tome up to me after and -say 'Where's your book?'. Now 1 have one," he said. Grimminck has also received an offer from a production company to make a --documentary about his ,lifc story. "What I once Industrial Design. Upon graduation feared the •-Gtimminck • also re - Most is now celvid Fanshawc's highest honor, The President's Prime. . He is now cin= - ploycd as ,a product - designer at Rovchn Engineering in Mt. Brydges. • - Grimminck . has.. also become an ad- vocate of adult cd- ucation and a voice - for the functional il- literate. - . • - He'is proud of a televised speech Grimminck. was, diagnosed as he was asked to give to a Royal t having four collapsed disks . and Commission on learning in 1993. two central herniated disks against thc-sciatic nerve. ' "1 was immobile for '. four . . months," reflects Grimminck.'"All I could do w,as blink my eyes." • ' Through,extgnsive massage ther- -apy Grimminck managed to slowly- ' recover from his injurics but it was ' obvious that he would not be able • to return to manual labor. "At that time I had io decide _ • - what i was going to do with my - life,- h decided that 1'd g ha,k to school with,the suppoit of fery z.t' ti- -Jy and workers compensat,,,. r ht said. "I now had to use my brain." . It was that pivotal 1:i- .'ecision that completely transformed ' his life. Growing up tl)c child of im- migrant parents from Holland, Grimminck and his twelve siblings were all labelled "slow learners" when they entered school. ' "We all went through the system As slow learners," he said. "1 was 'kind of just pushed thro'ugh." Fed up with' -'the system', he eventually quit school after.only re- ceiving a Grade 10 basic education. On September 3, 1993 Grim- minck finally returned to school .at the Centre for Lifelong Learning in London. He was ready to confront the demons that had controlled his life. - He received Ito assessment that classified him as a functional illiter- ate and the diagnosis that he had an inherited P300 Brainstem disorder. The disorder will always require him to require the use of aids like a calculator and spellcheck. "i had to go back to adult basic Robert Grimminck is getting ready to release his training, which i call adult kin- dergarten because you learn the ba- hook To Dream A Different Dream — A Personal sits of english and math," he said. , Journey Through Continuing Education. the thing I gain from the most. Robert Grimminck Times -Advocate, July 8, 1998 Page 21 COLDWELL BANxri. ALL—POINTS IZ EALTY S E12:%, ICES Pat O'Rourke (Res) 237-3762 e-mail; EXETER OFFICE - 147 MAIN ST. EXETER, ONT. 2354449 .1b4:4 CALL OUR EXETER OFFICE TOLL FREE FROM M.J. chanyi GRAND BEND & ZURICH AT 237.3182 (RES) 235-1077 VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT www_rsiIs.ca TO VIEW ALL OF OUR LISTINGS AT YOUR LEISURE Jerry Zehr (RES) 236-4712 e-mail: zehrithay.net direct line toll free (1..800)-342=72 1 7 Days or Evenings ZURICH OFFICE - 16 VICTORIA ST. ZURICH, ONT. 236-4712 LOTS OF SPACE (;RF::\ 1 I\1'EST\iEN1 IN THIS BEAUTIFUL CUSTOM BUILT 1 IOMF. ' - Huge rooms -3 bathrooms. Main floor laundry'. 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