A Gift/A Chance

You never know when one person can make a difference in your life.  You never know when you will be given a chance.  If you’re lucky, you may even be given a second chance.  The thing we have to remember, though, is to never give up. Even when times seem at their ultimate low – there is still hope.

There is a story spreading across the web this week and if you think about the turn of events for this man – it’s simply amazing.  His name is Ted Williams.  Ted is homeless.  He stood on the street corners in OH with a sign that said “I have a GOD given gift of voice, I’m an ex-radio announcer who has fallen on hard times.  Please!  Any help will be greatfully appreciated.  Thank you and God bless you.  Happy Holidays.”

Most us when we drive past these signs, pay little attention to the people holding them.  However, someone stopped for Ted.  And when they did, they realized that he had the most amazing voice-over voice.  I watched the video (see below) and was very impressed.  Ted told how he was a trained radio announcer who got caught up in drugs and alcohol, but that he had been clean for two years.

You’d think it would be cool just to get over seven million hits on youtube, but his life has had more blessings than that.  He has been getting job offers out the wazzou!     An NFL director of post-production said, “My boss said to me: ‘If you don’t get him hired, you’re fired.’ … I can’t make any guarantees, but I’d love to get him some work.”  The Ohio Credit Union League: Also on WNCI this morning, Williams was offered a $10,000 opportunity to do voice-over work. MTV and ESPN also expressed an interest. The Cleveland Cavaliers have even started a website – WeWantTedWilliams.com!

Now, although this week is his time to shine, know that it’s not going to be easy for Ted.   It’s now starting to come out that he has a criminal background.  He’s had numerous theft and forgery charges and in May 2010 pled guilty to misdemeanor theft charges.  He was supposed to be on the Today Show, but didn’t have a valid ID and his address is listed as the “streets of Columbus”.

It will be a long road.  It will be a difficult road, but nobody can deny that Ted has a gift!  I’ll be interested to see how Ted proceeds with his new chance at life.  When the Cavaliers were asked about his background they said, “We’re going to start with our heart first. We’re going to start from the perspective that we think this is an amazing individual who has a lot of components in him that represent who we are and what our DNA is.”  Good luck Ted, make it count!
Click on image below to watch the video