He has lost sight in both eyes, but with the help of the Holy Spirit, father of four Dean Whyte, continues to navigate the twists and turns of life while seeking to meet the basic needs of his family.
Whyte first lost sight in one of his eyes in 2001, the same year he had his first child. Since then, he has become a Christian, has gotten married, has built a three-bedroom house, has seen two of his children through high school, and has acquired a number of skills that he now uses to earn an income.
“God has been great! He has blessed me in many different ways, and I must say thank God for everything that he is doing so far,” said Dean, whose children are 23, 21, 16, and 13 years old.
Dean was a 25-year-old security guard when he became partially blind, and he was plunged into depression as he considered how much this would affect his life and his ability to be a good father.
“While having the first child, I decided to settle down and started to think on a positive note. When I found out about the issue, I was so distraught. I said to myself that this was the end of my life, but with God in our corner, you know that all things are possible,” he said, before adding, “I have a very nice and loving wife, who was very supportive, to the p
oint where she said, ‘you don’t need to worry.’”
Back in 2001, there was no Drug Serv, the government pharmacy where he could get discounted drugs. His small salary was insufficient to finance taking care of his family and other expenses such as rent, food, and utilities, despite the fact that he worked a lot of overtime. His medical situation worsened, and in 2016, he became completely blind due to glaucoma.
“The first thing happen [to you] as a blind person is depression. The moment you lose your sight, you become depress because now you have to depend on others,” he stated.
“I choose the Lord when I became blind and I started listening to my audio Bible, due to the depression I was going through. During that depression, Lucifer said to me, ‘You don’t see nobody don’t love you my youth; it is time you kill yourself.’”
Whyte went as far as getting a knife to carry out the act, but then he considered his children, and he could not go through with it. The voice of the Lord told him that he was about to make an unwise decision. As he reasoned with God, he recalled falling to his knees and giving his life to Him.
Navigating life as a blind man is very challenging, but Whyte has been able to do a lot through Christ.
“Persons know me as a father. Even though I am blind and I am having issues, I made sure my responsibilities are taken care of, and I am always out there doing what I need to do to make sure my family is okay.”
“Presently, I am a working person. I am an electrician, I am a plumber, I build computers, I and my wife make clothes, I install door locks, I hang doors, [and I] install windows,” he said.
Whyte also dabbles in construction and tackles odd jobs such as fixing appliances. He and his wife, Nadine, also started separate YouTube channels. The channels, Blind Motivational Speaker Dean Whyte and Life with Nadine and Family, document how they live. They have been married for 14 years, but have been together for over 27 years. Most of the skills Whyte has, including building games and PCs for clients, were not utilised until after he became blind.
“It has been a challenge at times to make a living, but I do what I can; I do what I have to. Even though it is a lot of work, remember that if I do not do it, I will not get to pay my mortgage, I will not get to pay the light, I will not get to pay the water bill, I could not purchase food, and I have two children still going to high school.”
In 2016, Whyte was awarded a plaque by the National Housing Trust for being the most supportive father. He recalled visiting the NHT when he just became a father to see how he could own a home. At the time, he was living in an insect-infested one-bedroom with his family and was concerned about the harm being posed to them. After throwing a partner with a financial institution and accumulating some funds, Whyte went to NHT to find out how he could acquire a house.
Due to some issues, Whyte was not qualified at the time, but he did not give up. When he returned in 2003, he was told that lands were being sold in both Mineral Heights and Longville Park in Clarendon and was encouraged to check them out. He immediately decided he wanted to purchase in Mineral Heights since it was closest to May Pen, but as it turned out, the rain fell that day during his visit. After seeing how inundated the land became with flood waters, he changed his mind. He went with the land in Longville Park and has been putting in a lot of sweat equity since then to build his dream house with his wife.
“Is a whole heap of scrapings. I had to be selling left, right, and centre. I would work, and when I left work, I would sell. I was selling perfume and cologne and all sorts of thing,” he said, as he recalled how hard he had to work to get the money needed to clear the land and eventually start the building process. He is pleased today that he can leave a legacy for his boys.
Whyte, who was separated from his mother at five and eventually became a street boy, is accustomed to hard work, as he started doing various jobs at age 10 to provide for himself. He washed cars, sold bottles, and dived for coins in those earlier years. He reconnected with his mother when he became an adult, and they had a beautiful relationship. His mother, who became a Christian, was unfortunately murdered along with her husband in 2009 at the business establishment they operated.
Today, Whyte encourages fathers with disabilities to not give up and to push forward. He said they should take advantage of the assistance being offered by government and non-government organisations such as the Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH), the Jamaica Council for Persons with Disabilities (JCPD), and the Jamaica Society for the Blind.
Whyte’s four children are baptised, but as youths, they are influenced by the culture. His advice to them is, “Out there inna the world is not sweet; Christ is sweeter.”