General News
23 August, 2023
Motivational speaker inspires students
MOTIVATIONAL speaker Ben Harkin showed students that being born without arms has not prevented him from living a full and exciting life.
MOTIVATIONAL speaker Ben Harkin showed students that being born without arms has not prevented him from living a full and exciting life.
Mr Harkin, who now shares his story as a motivational speaker to inspire others, visited students at St Thomas’ Primary School in Terang and St Colman’s Primary School in Mortlake this week.
The Peterborough native was unexpectedly born without arms, with no scans revealing his condition prior to birth and no explanation as to why.
Despite the challenges living with a disability has presented, Mr Harkin has achieved all he set out to do.
He enjoys playing sport, has travelled the world, graduated from university, drives a car and enjoys an independent lifestyle.
In his younger years he moved overseas, spending three years in Vietnam and time in Malaysia where he further honed his independence.
At the heart of Mr Harkin’s presentation was the belief he is no different than anyone else; everyone will face their own challenges, but through positivity and resilience he believes they too will conquer life’s obstacles.
“I just want to inspire the kids to be happier,” he said.
“To live, follow their dreams, plan, have courage and make good life decisions.”
Mr Harkin praised the students following his presentations at St Thomas’ Primary School, stating he could not recall having ever been asked so many unique questions.
The students took advantage of the opportunity to be inquisitive about Mr Harkin’s disability, and learn more about how he overcomes challenges.
They were able to learn that much of his success is replicable with a can-do attitude and personal resilience, giving the students a new perspective on how to adapt and overcome.
“It’s interesting how often I have parents come up to me and say thank you, feeling like their child came home a different person,” Mr Harkin said.
“The students were amazing, very attentive and they had some really great questions.”
St Thomas’ Primary School principal Matthew Uzkuraitis said Mr Harkin’s message was important for students and adults to hear.
“Positivity and always striving to reach your goals is a fantastic message for all ages, and to hear that message was fantastic for our school community,” he said.
“All schools try and build resilience and acceptance for their students, and encourage being inquisitive.
“To hear the questions and see our students be so empathetic, but also so grateful for what they have, was really pleasing.”
