CLIFTON PARK, NY – Inside an ordinary home in New York, an extraordinary tale is unfolding. Meet Kevin Tyrrell.
“He’s funny. He’s a funny kid, laughs. He’s got a great sense of humor,” said Ken Tyrrell, Kevin’s father. “So yeah, he’s a special guy for sure”
From the beach to band, and from the theater to prom, Kevin is your typical teenager. There’s one exception: He was born with cerebral palsy.
“With Kevin it’s pretty much all physical,” his mother Polly Tyrrell said. “He’s mentally, he’s just all there.”
Kevin is even writing books – without ever putting a finger on his keyboard. “Yeah, people always have a question about how do you type with your nose,” Ken Tyrrell said.
That’s right; at just 19, Kevin’s an author. He creates new worlds, one word at a time.
“I can do a page every two minutes,” Kevin explained.
Because writing is so hard for Kevin, he did not love it right away. “For so many years it was like pulling teeth. He wasn’t really interested in it,” Polly Tyrrell said. “But then one day he decided he wanted to write a book and, of course, I kind of chuckled.”
Kevin wasn’t kidding. While his body has limits, his imagination is bound by nothing. The stories started pouring out. “I’ve finished four and I’ve started like ten,” Kevin said.
Kevin’s first novel is now published, and at a recent book signing he met his adoring fans. He had a little fun, letting them see firsthand, how hard this is.
“When he was really little I had prayed that he would have a sense of humor,” Polly Tyrrell said. “That when people meet him with his wheelchair that they would see beyond the wheelchair quickly and just see him as a person and that seems to be happening quite a bit.”
Kevin hopes his next book is published by a big company. These are big dreams from a kid with a big heart, who, despite being born with so many challenges, decided to toss out the script and write his own happy ending.
If you would like to purchase one of Kevin’s books, click here.
