Tommy | Article About Tommy  

Sharing Faith With Music by:Anna Aroujo


His fingers gently slide across the keys.

With each melody that dances out of the radio, he listens.

Then he plays the same melody as if he knew it all the time.

To observe him, one would see more than fingers that perform beautifully,
more than someone who masters the ability to play. One would see a heart
that rejoices with each note, and a person who was born to make music.

Learning music by ear is a gift some musicians have. For Thanh Nguyen, music
freshman, it is a way of life.

Better known as Tommy to his friends, Nguyen was born blind. Yet being born
without sight has only allowed Nguyen to see things more clearly.

Nguyen has felt a pulse for music since he was a child.

"I have liked music since I was four years old," Nguyen said. "I used to
borrow my friend's keyboard to play."

Although Nguyen has faced countless challenges and difficulties

throughout his life, today, at age 21, he has accomplished much. Nguyen has
learned how to play several instruments, such as guitar, drums and the
keyboard, but his heart I is happiest when his fingers are sliding
across the piano keys.

His delight for music led him to pursue music as his career. Nguyen sees
music as a form of therapy that allows him to relax and deal with issues.
"Music means so much to me. If I am upset about something or have a hard
time with someone, playing music helps me to feel better," Nguyen said.

Although Nguyen taught himself how to play the keyboard, his skills are not
limited to playing instruments. He has composed over fifty songs of his own.
He has also played and sang simultaneously during a service held at Western
Heights Baptist Church in Duncan, Okla., where Nguyen attends services every
week.

"I began writing music right after I got out of high school. First I write
the notes, and then I write the words," Nguyen said.

Nguyen's gift for music reaches out to the people who surround him.

"I can't believe he is able to do what he does on the keyboard. He has such
a positive outlook on life. He has a genuine love and concern about people
that most people don't have," Daniel Litchford, Nguyen's best friend, said.

Not everything in Nguyen's life has been joyful and rosy, however. Nguyen is
originally from Vietnam. He comes from a family of two sisters and two
brothers. His mother
immigrated to the U.S. along with Tommy and his older brother, Tam. The
family moved in order to find better work opportunities. Although Nguyen
never met his father, he does hold vivid memories of his childhood in
Vietnam.

"My mother used to work from five in the morning until seven in the night. I
used to stay home by myself. She had to work in order to buy food," Nguyen
said. "Sometimes we didn't have food to eat, and we had to borrow from a
friend. There were days when we only ate once. It was hard over there. She
had to work hard to get one (U.S.) dollar a week or even one a month,"
Nguyen said.

In 1992, at the age of 11, Nguyen first stepped on United States' soil. He
then faced language barriers, American schools, teachers, classmates and a
different culture.

"At first it was really hard. People would make fun of me. I had few
friends, but my teachers and the friends I had helped me to learn and speak
English," Nguyen said.

Nguyen had little knowledge of English. He had to learn the ABCs as well as
the basic grammar and vocabulary of the English language that he now speaks
fluently.

"It was hard to understand the people talking to me. I never talked. I was
always afraid I was going to say the wrong word," Nguyen said. "My teachers
gave me so much homework, and after a year, I was doing better and was not
afraid anymore."

Nguyen first attended Will Rogers Elementary School, where he went for three
years. Later, he moved to MacArthur Junior High School, where he was active
with the school band. It was at MacArthur that Nguyen learned how to play
drums and established solid friendships.

Mrs. Theresa Beck, Lawton Public Schools' teacher of the visually impaired
and blind, has fond memories of Nguyen.

"He was always a pleasure to be around, always in a positive mood and always
willing to change," Beck said. "He has so much potential. I helped to adapt
the material for the classrooms so he could understand, and he always did
well."

During his high school years, Nguyen moved to Muskogee, Okla. At the time,
Muskogee Parkview High School offered better equipment and programs to aid
blind students, such as talking computers and Braille writing materials.

In May of 2001, Nguyen received his high school diploma and a new journey
was about to begin - college life. Prior to his high school graduation,
Nguyen was undecided about which university he would attend. He applied to
both Oklahoma City University and Cameron University, but CU took the first
step to call him.

Nguyen enrolled at CU in the spring of 2002.

"I like all my teachers. I get a lot of help from my friends. If I need
anything, someone is always going to help me," Nguyen said.

Five years after Nguyen and his family arrived in the U.S., his mother was
diagnosed with cancer, and she passed away.

Nguyen claims his source of strength is God. According to Nguyen, his faith
holds him strong and keeps him going, despite all the difficulties he faces.

"After I became a Christian, everything in my life became so much better.
Whenever I have family problems or hard times that I have to pass through, I
just talk to Him, and He helps me to go on," Nguyen said.

Nguyen dedicates his music skills to his faith, and he only plays and writes
Christian songs. His dream is to travel around the country and share the
message of his music.

"I want to spread God's word

Wild let people understand Him through the music," Nguyen said.

Nguyen's personality and faith provide him with loyal friendships.

"Tommy has blessed my life more than ten times than I have blessed him. God
gave me a very good friend when He sent him into my life," Litchford said.

The persistence and strength Nguyen possesses has earned him the respect of
several individuals.

"Tommy is very ambitious. It shows in his courage to come from Vietnam and
be able to transition to a different culture and even pursue a degree," Beck
said. "It is amazing how far he has come and how far he can go."