Blind 10-year-old boy first Sask. student to qualify for international Braille Challenge Finals
Isaiah Gauthier of Martensville placed 10th internationally
The first Saskatchewan student has qualified for the Braille Challenge Finals, after only 50 people were chosen from more than 1,000 who competed across the world.
Ten-year-old Isaiah Gauthier, who was born visually impaired, has tested extremely high on braille spelling, proofreading and speed. He lives with his family in Martensville, just north of Saskatoon.
Recently, the whole family was floored when they got the call from a woman in Los Angeles saying that he qualified for the finals.
"We just thought, 'Oh, he's a Top 10 Canada, exciting.' And she said, 'No, he's not the Top 10 Canada, he's actually the Top 10 internationally,'" said Isaiah's mother Renelle Gauthier.
"So Isaiah and I looked at each other and … we were very silent. I think our jaws were on the floor for about five minutes."
The qualifying 50 students scored the highest in braille literacy out of nearly 1,100 participating students from across the U.S., Canada, the U.K. and Australia.
"When I got the call, I just felt it was something I worked to achieve and I did my best at it," Isaiah said.
The 10-year-old, who won in a regional braille competition earlier this year, didn't know there were international finals.
"And so I was surprised but really happy at the same time. I like entering in braille contests because it's fun and it's fun to try and see how you'll rank," said Isaiah. "And it's fun to try and see, like, do I need to push myself even harder?"
Braille is a tactile writing system based on a 63-character code. Braille symbols represent letters of the alphabet, and in contracted braille, symbols can represent words. Isaiah, who began learning braille in kindergarten, uses machines to help him read and write.
Renelle said the woman who called from Braille Challenge Finals with the exciting news was very impressed with Isaiah.
"She said, 'We know Isaiah's name here and we're very excited to meet him.' And so that was really exciting."
Both Isaiah and his mother say they want to use this success to advocate for better resources for the blind.
"One of the things I would really like to see grow more in Canada and Saskatchewan is, you know, we have to believe in the learning and the growth and all of the aspirations that is part of [being] a child, including sports and leisure," Renelle said.
Renelle also said braille reading and writing devices are expensive, and they should be available to anyone who needs them so they can thrive. She said she wants Isaiah to get to live an independent life, and he doesn't want to rely on anyone as he gets older.
Isaiah said he is always looking at restaurants and other public venues for braille on places like washrooms.
"I think around Saskatchewan and just around anywhere, they should have braille everywhere because it's print. It's a different language, but it's written for blind people."
Renelle said she is very proud of Isaiah and his accomplishments.
"When he was little, a lot of people would say, 'I don't know how you deal with it. You must be meant to do this because I'd never be able to handle it.' Or they'd say, 'You're really going to have a lot of challenges and sufferings in your life,'" Renelle said.
"But through just our family life and supports and our faith, I feel very privileged to be his mom and he is just such an amazing person."
Meanwhile, Isaiah said he has a message for anyone reading this story who cannot see or walk:
"Just because maybe you can't do something somebody else can, doesn't mean you should give up on your dreams," Isaiah said. "Cause that's how it was for me and it should be like that for everyone else. And I think it can be."
Isaiah is set to go to Los Angeles for the Braille Challenge Finals June 21-23 at the University of Southern California.
With files from The Morning Edition and Laura Sciarpelletti