Gerry Kuhlman, assistant dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, shared his “very, very imperfect story” at the Skutt fireplace on Oct. 11 at 8 p.m. at Agape Latte, an event put on by the Student Leadership and Involvement Center.  

Kuhlman’s story started with being born 10 weeks premature in a small town in Nebraska.

“My wife says that in my entire life I have never been early for anything except birth,” Kuhlman said jokingly.

Kuhlman was put in an incubator because his lungs were not fully developed. Too much oxygen in the incubator resulted in his loss of sight.  

Kuhlman is the youngest of eight children and was so small that his brother could put a coffee cup over his head.

“You know you would think a little blind kid, premature birth, they would think I was fragile, give me a little chance, but they treated me pretty much like any older siblings treat their younger sibling,” Kuhlman said. 

“They rustled around, they beat me up, they let me run into things, and I’d be falling in the swimming pool. I’m actually fortunate that they treated me that way. They didn’t treat me any different.”

Kuhlman’s parents sent him to a special school 3 1/2 away from his home when he was 5 years old because the public schools did not have adequate resources to teach a blind person. 

This decision allowed Kuhlman to learn Braille and to use a cane. He later went to high school in his hometown and then on to Creighton.

“It was a great time and I took full advantage of it,” Kuhlman said of his undergraduate years.

While at Creighton, Kuhlman became close friends with Christine, who would later become his wife. Christine was born with fused joints and functions with a wheelchair.  

They have been married for nine years.

“Think about this: a blind guy who can’t drive, can’t read printed material, can’t find socks half the time, probably wears mismatched clothes half the time, married to a girl who can’t feed herself, can’t go to the bathroom by herself, can’t put her clothes on by herself. How the hell do we survive?” Kuhlman said.

Kuhlman went on to say that like his and his wife’s physical challenges, everyone has their own disabilities. 

He referenced his habit of procrastination and bad spelling and his wife’s tendency to forget things as some of their other disabilities.  

“We fill in each other’s flaws with our gifts.It’s like a puzzle. We fit together,” Kuhlman said.

Kuhlman also talked about lessons he learned from his favorite book, “Tattoos on the Heart,” by the Rev. Greg Boyle, S.J., and a Bible passage he loves. It reads “you are the light of the world.” 

He encouraged students to embrace their faults and use their abilities to “be a light for one another.” 

A question-and-answer session followed the talk. 

Students asked Kuhlman about what it was like to grow up with a disability. He said he wanted to be a disk jockey when he was little, but went through many different majors in college.  

Students responded positively to Kuhlman’s talk.

“He was such an engaging and compelling speaker who spoke on how being blind has influenced his life, and how he connects that to his faith life,” said College of Arts and Sciences senior Sarah Duffy.  

“Having him speak about this provided a thoughtful and meaningful break to the stress of midterms week!”