The Dot Experience Cast: Tim Hornik

A beacon of positivity, independence, and dedication, Timothy Hornik has dedicated his adult life to serving members of the blindness community with love and intentionality.  

Early Life and Vision 

Born sighted, Tim Hornik gave little thought to vision loss, as he wasn’t predisposed to developing blindness later in life. He grew up as any sighted child, and in his early 20s, enlisted in the United States Army, where he began his long-lasting career in the US military. 

Tim was deployed to Iraq in the fall of 2004, at the age of 24. On November 11th he was out on a mission with his unit, providing a safe perimeter for local citizens visiting the mosque and assisting the Iraqi National Guard. During the mission, Tim was shot in the head by a sniper, and his vision went dark. “The bullet entered through my left temple and exited out my right. Fortunately, it missed a major part of my brain, which is why I’m still here talking,” said Tim.  

While Tim was aware of the security risks associated with missions like this one, he never expected to experience such a life-altering injury. “We knew this was the potential, but we still don’t expect it to happen. In your twenties you think you’re invincible. You don’t have to worry about that. That happens to other people,” said Tim. Timothy was taken to the local hospital immediately following the incident. He woke up the next morning on November 12, 2004, his 25th birthday, completely blind.  

Career 

Over the next seven years, Tim remained in active duty with the United States Army. Doing his best to move forward, he still had trouble confronting the reality of his vision loss. “Like so many people I’ve worked with who go blind, especially later in life, when you start your blindness journey you feel so hopeless. You realize just how little control you have. It’s a shock to lose access to the way you were receiving information about your surroundings, and we lose that instantaneously. For me, that seemed like the longest time,” said Tim.  

Having spent his entire career in the military during wartime, Tim believed that without the ability to finish his mission he was without purpose. Without his sight, he felt like he was no longer a valuable asset. Tim spent time at the Waco Blind Rehab Center, part of the VA (United States Department of Veterans Affairs), where he received instruction on using a cane, and skills such as navigating a computer with assistive technology. 

Although he remained in active duty with the United States military, Tim felt he constantly had to prove to himself and others that he wasn’t helpless, and that he had so much more to give. As he began to reflect on what he wanted for his life, Tim began to move forward from his fear of what this new life would look like. “I really started to go out and say, ‘Hey, I’m able to get around. I can use a cane. I’m able to say with confidence and even pride, that yeah, I’m blind and I can get around,” said Tim. 

Tim received his master’s degree in social work before retiring from the US military and has worked as a social worker for the past 14 years helping both veterans and civilians who experience vision loss find their way and overcome the same feelings he dealt with 20 years ago. “I love helping people. I love to see people find happiness and joy when they get that ‘aha’ moment, when they’re able to overcome and move on from a place I was once upon a time,” said Tim. 

Tim uses his experience with vision loss each day as he helps other individuals working in the blindness field to understand what it looks like to care for someone with vision loss, and to show his clients how much is possible moving forward. 

The Dot Experience 

Tim is excited to be a part of the Dot Experience as we provide an opportunity for individuals with all types of abilities to become familiar with the history of APH and the blindness field. “The Dot Experience is about all of us being able to understand how we all approach the same task differently. We all use different tools to achieve the same outcomes. The same can be said for how we present resources and the different ways you can provide multimodal experiences,” said Tim.