Page 52 - The Exceptional Harley Fetterman

JUDY K JOHNSON

Harley's parents were able to proudly to brag about Harley's school
accomplishments. Since Harley made straight A's, he was tested
during his third grade and determined to be a “Gifted and Talented”
student. By eighth grade, Harley would become a member of the
National Junior Honor Society. Even though Harley was blind, he was
clearly excelling at academics. He was known to accomplish well any
task he was given. He just seemed to easily soak up any information
he focused on in any situation at school.

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Near the end of Harley's 5 grade and into 6 grade, Carolyn
Mason and Harley began exploring the layout of the periodic table as
an introduction to scientific elements which students study in more
depth in later grades. Harley would study definitions for atomic
numbers (the number of protons in an atom), atomic symbols (the
letters that represent the element), and atomic mass (the average mass
of an element) and how chemical equations stand for reactions which
produce other materials and represent the movement of molecules. By
eighth grade, Harley would be ready for basic balancing of chemical
equations. He needed to be prepared with knowledge of the Braille
symbols he would be encountering in his assignments. Harley was
enthralled with the challenge of chemical equations. He would
predictably chuckle with glee when he was presented with chemical
equations that he needed to balance.

In middle school, Harley's braille technology was upgraded to a
newer BrailleNote with a 32-cell display which he used in class. He
also got a laptop for homework assignments. During this time, he
started learning how to explore the internet and navigate web pages.
With intense fascination, Harley persevered in his study of Braille
music code in sixth grade. He was very attentive in acquiring music
skills though school band opportunities. Patrick Creel, his private
horn school instructor, helped him try out various instruments at the
band instrument drive as his parents observed his reactions. As Harley
“buzzed” on the horn mouthpiece, his dad, Kevin, interjected, “Come
on son, the saxophone is where we should be, that's a cool instrument
and will get you the ladies.”

Harley leaned in close to the horn instructor and said, “Excuse me
sir, you'll have to excuse my dad, he's kind of a redneck!”

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