A Visit to Tuckahoe School and What Happened When We Asked One Question

We have spoken at the United Nations. We have testified before Congress. We have delivered keynotes to Fortune 500 companies and national conferences.

But some of the most powerful moments we have experienced on any stage have happened in school gymnasiums and auditoriums, in front of young people who are still figuring out who they are and what they are capable of.

Our visit to Tuckahoe School was one of those moments.

The Assembly

We were invited to speak to approximately 300 middle and high school students, along with faculty and administrators. The audience included students with differing abilities — young people who know what it feels like to be underestimated, to be told what they cannot do, to wonder whether the world has a place for them.

We started where we always start. With John’s story.

John Lee Cronin was born with Down syndrome. From the very beginning, there were people who focused on what he could not do. What he would not achieve. What dreams were not realistic for someone like him.

John did not accept those limits. Neither did we.

We told the students about John’s birth and the journey that followed. We told them about the obstacles he faced and the people who believed in him anyway. And then we told them about what he built, John’s Crazy Socks, a global social enterprise that has shipped products to 94 countries, donated over $800,000 to charity, and created jobs for dozens of people, more than half of whom have a differing ability.

We asked John to tell them, in his own words, what Down syndrome means to him.

He told them it does not define him. It does not hold him back. It is part of who he is, but it is not the whole story.

Then we asked the room a question.

Has anyone ever told you that you couldn’t do something?

Every hand went up.

Every single one.

The Student with 8,000 Followers

We talked about entrepreneurship. We asked the students whether any of them had ever thought about starting a business. We shared the stories of Andrew and Thomas, two members of our team whose lives were transformed by meaningful work and the chance to contribute.

Then came the Q&A.

A student stood up. He said he had wanted to start a YouTube channel. When he told people about it, they laughed at him. They told him he couldn’t do it. They told him it was a waste of time.

But his brother believed in him. So, he kept going.

His YouTube channel now has 8,000 followers.

Mark walked over and hugged him. He told the room that this student was a hero, not because of the follower count, but because he kept going when the people around him said stop.

The room gave him a standing ovation.

Another student raised his hand. He said he had always wanted to start a business but wasn’t sure he could. After listening to John talk about building John’s Crazy Socks, he said he now knows he can.

That is why we speak.

After the Applause

At the end of the assembly the students gave John and Mark a wild standing ovation. Then they lined up.

They wanted to shake John’s hand. To take a picture with him. To tell him something, even if they weren’t sure exactly what. John hugged as many as he could reach. He never rushes these moments. He knows they matter.

Two brothers waited until nearly everyone else had gone. When they finally reached John, they began to weep.

They told us they have autism. They said that no one had ever really believed in them. Not the way John’s story made them feel believed in.

John gave them hope. That is not a small thing. For those two young men, standing in that gymnasium, it may have been everything.

What the Teachers Said

Erik Solivan, one of the teachers at Tuckahoe School, reached out afterward. He wanted us to know that his special education students had been so moved by the visit that they created drawings inspired by the themes of the assembly: inclusivity, responsibility, and hard work. He sent those drawings to us.

We will cherish them.

Kerry Sette, who organized the event, wrote to us as well.

“You were amazing. You changed lives today. Everyone was so inspired and moved. People are still talking about it.”

We believe her. Because we felt it too.

Why We Do This

We speak because work changes lives. Because too many young people - and too many adults - have been told what they cannot do for so long that they have started to believe it.

John’s story is proof that those limits are not real.

The YouTube kid’s story is proof that those limits are not real.

Andrew’s story is proof. Thomas’s story is proof. The two brothers who wept in that gymnasium, their courage in showing up and asking for hope is proof.

Every hand that went up in that room belonged to a young person who had been told no. Our job on that stage and every stage is to help them hear yes.

If you would like John and Mark to speak at your school, organization, or event, we would love to hear from you. Visit johnandmarkcronin.com or reach out at service@johnscrazysocks.com.

Because some rooms are ready to believe. They just need someone to show up and say: you can.