Ben Carson: Gifted Hands

Benjamin S. Carson, Sr., M.D. is a world renowned pediatric neurosurgeon. He has literally saved lives and improved the lives of the people who know him and know his story. His is an American story. Its about struggle, overcoming obstacles, redemption, grasping opportunity, faith, the pursuit of happiness and all of the things that make America unique in the world. His message is clear and consistent. You can reach the American dream. You can reach for your potential with faith, hard work and the tough loving of a good mother. He preaches the value of education and one can rise above the most humble of beginnings through a solid education. In fact, he and his wife have established scholarship foundation, the Carson Scholars Fund, to pay for college for youth who show strong academic ability and humanitarian values.

The story shows how his divorced mother, Sonya Carson, raised her two sons, Ben and his older brother, Curtis Carson on the mean streets of Detroit’s west side and taught them to rise above their circumstances to pull themselves out of poverty. Curtis Carson became an engineer and Benjamin Carson became a pediatric neurosurgeon.

Dr. Ben Carson’s story premiered on TNT tonight. Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story, sponsored by Johnson and Johnson and starring Cuba Gooding, Jr. and Kimberly Elise as Carson and his mother, Sonya Carson. The movie is, of course, based on the book by the same name. There is also a companion children’s book, The Ben Carson Story. The children’s book is written in such a way as to help parents use Ben Carson’s story to teach children the lessons and values that are offered through learning his story.

Dr. Carson became the Director of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital when he was just 33-years-old. President George W. Bush awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2008. He and his wife, Candy Carson, live in Baltimore County, Maryland. They are the parents of three grown sons. You can learn more about him at his website.

'Ben Carson Story' Staged At Great Mills High School

"The Ben Carson Story" will be performed at 7 p.m. Feb. 23 at Great Mills High School, 21130 Great Mills Rd., in conjunction with Black History Month.

The 45-minute play tells of Carson's journey from an inner-city Detroit childhood to his position as director of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital. The play will be performed by the Columbia Center for Theatrical Arts. The event is free and open to the public. At 6 p.m., attendees are invited to see demonstrations of student activities in the Lights On After School program.

The performance is sponsored by St. Mary's County public schools, the county library and the Boys and Girls Club of Southern Maryland. For details, contact Mark Smith at 301-475-5511, Ext. 137.

Dr. Ben Carson's Parenting Success

How do you raise a smart, respectable child who just so happens to change history? The world renowned pediatric neurosurgeon Ben Carson, MD, shares his experiences as a dad of three and the lessons of his mother, Sonya Carson, a single mom who had only a third grade education.

What's the most important lesson your mother passed on? You are not a victim. My mother never accepted excuses from me, and when I tried to give them, she quoted a poem that began, 'You're the captain of your ship.' The bottom line is that we can go through life finding other people to blame, or we can own up to our situation and deal with it. That's exactly what I've taught my children.

Did you ever have trouble relating to your boys? Just remember what it's like to be a kid. If you stop and think about what you once felt at your child's age, it can turn you into a considerably better parent.


How do you make time for your family? When my children were growing up we had weekly discussions about anything that was happening in their lives. If one of the boys was dealing with a bully at school, for instance, we all talked through the possible responses and the consequence of each reaction. I [also] made it a requirement that my family accompany me on most of my trips. All my kids have frequent flyer cards for just about every airline! We've been all over the world together -- from Zion National Park in Utah, to a trip all the way down The Nile.

Has that changed now that they're in their 20s? If you create and maintain an open relationship with your children when they are very young, when they have a question or issue as they grow up, they will come to you. And they will know that you will not judge them.

You've said that your mother working as a house cleaner was a great lesson. How? When she worked as a house cleaner, she began noticing that the people she worked for had lives of great achievement. So she compared their environment to ours, and she asked herself, 'What's the difference?' When you notice a child doing well, find out what his or her parent is doing right. That's what my mother did.

Any examples? I'll never forget what my mother once said to me: 'If you start reading and stop looking at TV so much, pretty soon, people will be looking at you.

As it turns out, Sonya couldn't have been more right. Watch Oscar winner Cuba Gooding Jr. as Dr. Carson in the TNT Original Movie, Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story, premiering Saturday, February 7 at 8 pm ET.