Meet Mandy Harvey, an icon of Healthy Survivorship.
Mandy Harvey and me at the Eisemann Center (February 8, 2020)
At the Eisemann Center, I enjoyed soulful jazzy rock music sung by Mandy Harvey, a vivacious 32-year-old singer. Her between-songs banter made me—and, I suppose, everyone else—feel like I was her new best friend. Despite my decades of living knee-deep in survivorship, today I feel newly inspired by both her music (yup, I bought her CDs) and the story behind it.
Since she was 4 years old, Mandy loved singing. While a college freshman studying music, she lost all hearing due to illness and was dropped from the program. In this 8-minute video, Mandy shares how she traveled through despair to hope. Then she sings her original song, “Try,” doing something on America’s Got Talent (AGT) that seems impossible: making music that she can’t hear.
Ever since her 4th Place win at the 2017 AGT finals, she’s been reaching beyond the silence in perfect pitch, using her voice to help others find hope. [From “Try”] “I don't feel the way I used to. The sky is grey much more than it is blue…And I'm tired of getting used to the day [i.e., being unhappy with how things are], So I will try…..”
After going deaf, Mandy tried to sing. She did it. Ever since, she’s been trying to make music that helps others find hope. Without doubt, she’s lifting more people than she can count, including me.
Today, Mandy sees her deafness as only a small piece of who she is —the part that, years ago, pushed her in a different direction than the one she wanted to take. Today, she is defined by her voice and generous spirit. She’s on a beautiful life path, one filled with love, joy and music. Listen to Mandy to help you find the hope needed to try.
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