Floyd Morris is well known in Jamaica for his fight for the disabled community, and for being a source of inspiration to them in attaining a high level of success.

Morris grew up in a quiet rural farming district in eastern Jamaica. At 17 years of age, Morris began losing his sight after he developed glaucoma in 1983. The new impairment delayed him graduating from high school three years later. Three years later in 1989, he went completely blind.

A true soldier
Like a true soldier in the army of God, Morris, a Seventh-day Adventist, decided that he had to march on. In 1991, after two years of trauma, he decided that he was going to reclaim his life. This he did by getting assistance from the Jamaica Society for the Blind where he received rehabilitation and learned to read and write Braille. Since then, Morris has moved on and has not looked back. He has since completed his bachelor of arts in mass communication and a master of philosophy in government.

Makes an impact to disabled persons
Morris created history in 1998 when he became the first visually impaired senator in Jamaica and in 2013m Senator Morris became the first visually impaired person to be appointed President of Jamaica’s Senate.

He has been credited with the passing of several bills and programs that have and still positively impact the disabled community.

Earns a Ph.D
In November 2017, Senator Morris received a Doctor of Philosophy Degree from the University of the West Indies in Kingston, Jamaica. He became the second blind person to achieve the highest level of academia at the university in its 69-year history.

Senator Morris, who is a member of the Andrews Memorial Seventh-day Adventist Church in Kingston, says that the church has been a compass which has helped to guide in his political and educational pursuits.

Keeps Eye on the Prize
“Every action of my life, has been attributed to my spiritual growth and development and the Adventist Church has played a major role in that,” adds Morris. “It’s not that I am brighter that anyone else but one of the things that blindness has done is to cause me to be very focused.”

Senator Morris is not caught up with all the distractions that the world has to offer, he says. “When I set my eyes on a prize, I remain focused on it and God has been true to me.”