Orléans blind and deaf athlete Kevin Frost recently received another honour to add to his collection. Earlier this month, the 58-year-old golfer and author was bestowed with the King Charles III Coronation Medal during a ceremony at TD Place. http://orleansonline.ca/pages/N2025051502.htm
The medal, which is administered by the Chancellery of Honours at Rideau Hall, is being awarded to individuals who have made a significant contribution to Canada or to a particular province, territory, region or community of Canada.
Frost was nominated by the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB) for being an inspiration to other sight-impaired Canadians through his accomplishments as an athlete on the national and international stage, and for his advocacy in seeking recognition and assistance to help overcome obstacles sight-impaired Canadians face every day.
Frost first got involved in sport in a serious way in his 30s after he had already lost most of his hearing and eye sight which was a result of Usher’s Syndrome. The condition reduced his eyesight to a five per cent field of vision, which is like looking at the world through a straw, and left him with 10 per cent of his hearing.
In 2005, he took up rowing and speed skating to give him some focus in his life which would allow to set goals. He ended excelling at speed skating and went on to win over 80 medals in provincial, national and international competition including three world championships.
In 2017, Frost took up tandem cycling and together with his guide, won a silver medal at the 2019 Canadian Para Championships.
2017 was also the year Frost decided to take up the sport of golf. Within two years, he was taking part in blind golf events at the provincial and national level with the help of his coaches and his wife Loretta, who acts as his caddy and spotter during competitions.
After a two-year hiatus from competition during the COVID pandemic, Frost returned to the links with a vengeance. Last year, he won both the Ontario and Canadian championships using the Stableford scoring system in the B2 category, which is the level just above totally blind golfers.
During the past two years he also found time to write and publish a book, Deaf Blind Champion: A True Story of Hope, Inspiration in Excellence in Sport and Life which has sold over 5,000 copies and is available on Amazon and local Chapters stores, and he continues to provide his services as a motivational speaker. It’s quite the resume and the reason why he received the King Charles medal.
“I didn’t see this one coming,” Frost chuckles at the unintended pun. “It really puts all the hard work I’ve done over the years in perspective and it motivates to want to do even more.”
The latest issue Frost has decided to tackle are attacks on service dogs by other dogs. His own service dog Woody was attacked and bitten by a German Shepherd while he was out for a walk with Loretta.
The owner of the German Shepherd was fined $250 for allowing his dog to wander off his property and for not being on a leash.
Frost wants attacks on service dogs to be treated much more seriously with much higher fines.
“It costs an average of $50,000 to train a service dog and thousands more treatment and retraining after they’ve been attacked. Some dogs never recover,” says Frost.
Besides advocating for service dogs, Frost also plans to expand his summer golf camp program for sight-impaired youth and adults. He held four camps last year. This year he hopes to hold two evening camps at the White Sands par 3 on St. Joseph Blvd. and 4-5 day camps at Anderson Links.
The camps are being sponsored by the Ottawa Senators Foundation. Anyone interested in attending the camps can contact Kevin at kevin-nemo@hotmail.com