LA CROSSE, Wis. — If you ask George for his last name, without hesitation he said, “Wilson! I’m Dennis the Menace’s neighbor!”
He’s done this before.
But it’s been life, not anyone named Dennis, that has been a menace to George Wilson.
His parents divorced when he was 3-years-old. On this 12th birthday, his father died. When he turned 19, he went blind, because of a misdiagnosis of a glaucoma condition.
Bitterness was there for the taking. But he passed.
“My attitude has always been, I can do the same things I always wanted to do,’’ he said. “I just have to find a different way of doing them.”
So the day he went shopping at Goodwill of North Central Wisconsin, in La Crosse, he entered the store and asked for help. Along came team member Taylor Devenport. And something immediately caught his attention.
“Her laugh,’’ he said. “Taylor has one of the most infectious laughs. From the first day I came in the store, I knew where Taylor was all the time.”
Wilson started to shop at Goodwill more frequently.
“That’s when I started getting to know George,’’ said Devenport, “and after years went on, he kept coming back and calling me by name when he came in. He’s like, ‘I want Taylor to help me.’ And it made feel good inside; it made me feel really wonderful — like I made a difference in his life.”
“And also because I came from a learning disability and he has a disability, so we bonded in a way,” she added.
Like Wilson, Devenport has not allowed a learning disability to slow her down.
About 10 years ago, she started at Goodwill through a school-to-work program, which provides work experience for high school students with disabilities. Since then, she has advanced from team member to job coach, and now senior job coach.
“It made me really excited and happy and I was able to show people what I actually can do,” she said. “And I love helping people. …Having a learning disability — it really made me feel like I knew where the kids [I trained] were coming from, because I’ve been where they were. So I want them to feel as good as I felt when I first came here.’’
Devenport has that knack to make others feel good. That’s one reason Wilson said he kept showing up.
“When she comes into work, it’s every day is just a beautiful day, no matter what’s happening in her own life,’’ he said. “It’s still a good day to be alive. And when I would come in as a customer I’d ask for Taylor. I could be having one of the worst days you could imagine, but just going around with her a few minutes and doing some shopping, I mean, it just brightened up my day. And it’s been like that.”
Wilson has had his share of rough days since moving from Chicago to La Crosse. His marriage ended in divorce. He earned an associate’s degree as a paralegal, but couldn’t find work. So he went to UW-La Crosse and got a bachelor’s degree in political science with a minor in constitutional law. Still, he said couldn’t find work. So he went to UW-Platteville and earned his master’s in criminal justice theory and research. He still couldn’t get hired.
“I would say yes,’’ he said when asked if he felt being blind was the roadblock that prevented him from being employed. “I tried, but no bites. Nobody was taking it.”
So Wilson started doing volunteer work, and would continue to shop and see his friend Devenport at Goodwill. Wilson served as a cheerleader for Devenport, and infused her with confidence as she contemplated applying for positions to advance. And then one day she turned the tables and encouraged Wilson to apply for an opening at Goodwill.
Wilson admittedly was hesitant. There always was a reason an employer would find to pass on him.
“You know, it was like, I should take some of my own medicine,’’ said Wilson.
He did and today, these friends are coworkers.
It’s been an unlikely journey.
“Everything,’’ Devenport said about what Wilson’s friendship has meant to her. “I’ve never met a person like George. I never had a friend like George. He always has the right answer, always believes in you; I couldn’t have a better friend.”
The feeling, as you might’ve suspected, is mutual.
“She has been an extraordinary good friend,’’ said Wilson. “Just knowing her, she’s a wonderful person. She’s a very caring person. She really cares about people. She has a genuine love and affection for people, and she wants to help. And I think that’s what makes Taylor shine.’’
Together, they are a shining example of what friendship can be.
Story idea? You can reach Mike Woods at 920-246-6321 or at: michael.t.woods1@charter.com