Apr
29
Written by:
Rev. Ed Boon
4/29/2010 10:39 AM
On Sunday May 16 we will have the wonderful privilege of having as our special guest speaker for the morning service Sue Thomas the former F.B.I. agent.
SUE THOMAS F. B. EYE
On Sunday May 16 we will have the wonderful privilege of having as our special guest speaker for the morning service Sue Thomas the former F.B.I. agent.
Sue was the first deaf person to work as an undercover agent for the FBI. She specialized in the lip-reading of suspects. She had started out with the FBI as a finger print examiner but was moved to the undercover surveillance team after one of the agents realized the potential of her lip reading abilities. She worked with the FBI from 1979 to 1983,
Sue was born with the ability to hear but at the age of eighteen months for some unknown reason she totally lost her hearing. Her devastated parents were told that she would never amount to anything and that she should be placed in and institution. Neither Sue nor her parents would allow this handicap to hold her back. At the age of seven she became the youngest Ohio State free style skater in skating history. Meanwhile therapists worked with her to enable her to speak intelligibly and at the same time she became an expert lip reader.
Despite her inherent abilities, she had to struggle through her school years working with teachers who didn’t understand her disability and with fellow students who often made her life miserable. She persevered through these difficulties and graduated from High School and Springfield College in Massachusetts earning her degree in Political Science and International Affairs. Finding work was her next great obstacle but in 1979 she was able to get a job with the FBI.
Sue is a woman of great faith and following her time with the FBI she began a speaking ministry. Her ministry was well received. However, in 2001 she was confronted with another great problem. While on her way to a speaking engagement she felt a creeping numbness working its way up from her fingers to the top of her head. She gave her speech then went directly to the hospital emergency room where she was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. In her own words, Multiple Sclerosis was one of her greatest challenges. As she herself said on the National Multiple Sclerosis website: “Fighting it is a waste of precious energy, it is only by embracing my MS that I learn life’s greatest lessons.”
None of life’s challenges have been able to dampen Sue Thomas’ dynamic spirit as she continues to break the sound barrier with audiences worldwide. Her humor is contagious and her stories are compelling.
Wherever Sue goes, she is accompanied by her very faithful hearing/special skill dog Katie. Katie has been such an important part of her life that she would like to develop a canine training center that would provide special skill dogs for others.
Sue’s career took an interesting leap forward in 2002 when the TV series Sue Thomas F. B. Eye premiered on PAX TV. The series starring the deaf actress Deanne Bray was loosely based on Sue’s actual F. B. I. experiences. The series was a tremendous success reaching more than 2.5 million viewers in the U.S. It was also syndicated to some 60 nations.
Sue will be speaking here at the Bridgton Alliance Church on May 16 at our 9:00 AM service. There will be no admission charge but a love offering will be taken for her. Let us be in prayer for this very special service and let’s be sure to invite as many friends as possible to this service.