Kathy Buckley almost died at birth.  She had aseptic meningitis at age five; during her childhood, she was sexually abused.  As a young adult she had two serious car accidents, then one day, while sunbathing on a beach, she was run over by a jeep, and her body was crushed.  During the next few years, she suffered from debilitating seizures.  Later, she was stricken with malignant cancer.

Did I forget to mention she also has a hearing-loss that went undiagnosed until she was eight years old?  People had thought she had a mental deficiency, as in situations where a person has a very low IQ (Intelligence Quotient).  Unable to hear the people around her, she quickly learned how to read lips, all the while, desperately trying to fit in.

Over and over, the message she received from others was: “You can’t, you won’t, you’re ugly, you’re broken, you’re stupid.”

Talk about adversity!

But now when Buckley talks about her past, she’ll tell you:  “All my challenges have been a blessing put on me…There’s a reason I went through everything I did, so I could be a tool to help others.”

These days, Buckley devotes herself to helping youngsters who are deaf and hard-of-hearing, in overcoming their own adversities.  Through the non-profit organization No Limits, located in Culver City California, she volunteers her time to work with children to reinforce their strengths and provide them with encouragement.  To their parents, she provides practical advice on how to be advocates for their children.

“Kathy’s dedication to the children is amazing,” said Michelle Christie-Adams founder and executive director of No Limits.  “She’s got the biggest heart of anyone I have ever met.  If you’re having a hard day, she’ll cheer you up with her humor.  The kids love her so much.”

Buckley points out that because she has had first-hand experience as a child with a hearing loss, she can provide parents with significant insight.  Unfortunately, her own parents had little knowledge about how to help Buckley deal with her physical condition.  Often, in denial, they simply ignored the subject of Buckley’s deafness. 

So whereas Buckley now looks for the humor in her childhood experiences, for years, her hardships were no laughing matter.

There was a time in her life when she was angry.

“I’d never take responsibility.  I was pissed off at the world because they deserved it after everything they had done to me,” she recalls.  She was living a life filled with loneliness, rejection, bitterness and resentment.

Then, a realization hit her.  The negativity that filled her life “Was of my own making,” she said.  “My thoughts and words had become my enemy, my limitation, my disability.”

Buckley’s new attitude only came after years of meeting and associating with an array of ordinary and extraordinary people, people she likes to refer to as the “angels” in her life.  Although, she wasn’t always willing to listen to--or lip read--what they were saying.

Then too, she did her share of soul-searching and praying, even when faith was hard to find.

And in the process, she found her true self…The person who now boldly proclaims a much different message than the one she was accustomed to:  You can, you will, you’re beautiful, you’re unbroken, you’re intelligent.

Today, Buckley can say these words to others because she has discovered the power of choice.

“I want people to know that they can choose to live, not just exist,” she said.  “No matter how hard their life has been or how they have been treated, they are worthy of all the good things the world has to offer.  But it has to be their choice to focus on the good things and let go of the bad.”

Yet, Buckley doesn’t always choose to deliver this serious message in a somber way.  Instead, she says, “It’s a gift to find the humor in my pain,” and she will bar no holds when it comes to poking fun at herself, and all the people who used to make fun of her.

It was more than twenty years ago that Buckley first took to the stage as a stand-up comedienne.  Interestingly, it all began with a dare.

She had recently become friends with actress Geri Jewell, who had a recurring role on the hit TV series “The Facts of Life” and who also had cerebral palsy.  When Buckley learned about a comedy contest called “Stand-up Comics Take a Stand”, it was Jewell who coaxed Buckley into entering the competition with a friendly, brazen challenge.  Realizing the event was being held to help raise money for children with cerebral palsy, she conceded.

Buckley’s naïveté had her competing against several much-more experienced funny people.  Yet in the end, she won the contest and was soon on her way to being touted as America’s first hearing-impaired comedienne.    

During this transitional time of her life, Buckley’s fame--and self-confidence--grew.  As well, her perspective on life changed dramatically.

“I made a decision to look at the events in my life from the most positive angle I can,” she said.

Another turn of events, soon had her appearing onstage offering her own style of motivational speaking--a decidedly heart-felt and straightforward presentation about her life, laced with enough humor to bring the house down.  This facet of her life has allowed her to travel across the country offering people newfound hope, and the courage to change.

“So much has happened to me that almost anyone with a problem can find something to identify with,” she quipped.

The more that Buckley connected with people, the more she discovered she could make a positive impact on their lives.  Plus, she learned she could use her celebrity to bring more attention to the challenging issues faced by deaf and hard-of-hearing children, and now she’s doing just that.

Her involvement in No Limits’ theatrical program has given Buckley the chance to work side-by-side with deaf children who are learning to speak and help them build their self-esteem.  Christie-Adams explained that when the children realize that Buckley wears hearing aids just as they do, it inspires them to believe that like Buckley, they too can achieve success.

This year, through a collaboration with Paul Mitchell (the hair product company), Buckley was able to use her motivational speaking engagements to help raise funds for No Limits.  It meant she’d be able to help not only the attendees at the forums, but also the kids at No Limits.

Following her more than two dozen speaking presentations, as usual, the letters of thanks and praise poured in.

An excerpt from one such note read:  “Thank you so much. I left the room with an overwhelming sense of inspiration.  Also, with the feelings of excitement and desire to make my life my own. I can’t wait to wake up tomorrow and continue this new journey in life with a whole new outlook.”   Signed, Taylor.

Filled with a message of forgiveness and unconditional love, and the importance of being non-judgmental, Buckley hopes to continue to foster positive change everywhere she goes.

“I have seen that there are no limits to what people can do with their lives,” she said.

(Kathy Buckley is a stand-up comedienne, actress, motivational speaker, author, survivor...and hero.  She resides in Glendale California.)

(Author’s postscript:  Kathy Buckley warned me that when I tell her story, “Don’t forget the jokes!”  However, when I attempted to put her jokes on paper, they seemed to be lacking something.  Then, I realized that “something” was Kathy Buckley herself.  In the interview, she did make me laugh, over and over.  And she made me cry.  When I left, I was smiling.)