Fish Ladder Story: Tanis Hooker

Tanis Hooker was born three months premature. He weighed one pound nine ounces. During his 99 days stay at the Blodgett Hospital Neonatal Unit, he developed severe proliferative retinopathy of prematurity that required cryotherapy to each eye. Tanis subsequently came under the care of Dr. Michael Trese at William Beaumont Hospital where he received multiple surgeries and frequent office visits, over many years, to retain vision. 

Despite his visual and fine motor challenges, Tanis always remained positive through school. He was one of the first prematurely born blind children in the East Grand Rapids Public School System. He blazed the trail for many similarly affected students who would follow him. 

Tanis and his family were one of the original contributors to the Visually Impaired Sports and Activity Day (VISD) held annually in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He loved to ride the tandem bike with his father; they can be seen regularly riding the streets and bike trails in Kent County. Tanis also “anchored” the Tandem Bike and Soccer venues at the VISD for many years. Tanis excelled at swimming. He was active in the Special Olympics swimming team and raced competitively on the East Grand Rapids High School swimming team. Tanis is a student at the Noorthoek Academy at Grand Rapids, Community College.  The Academy provides a college experience, offering continuing education and inclusion opportunities in the arts and sciences for adults with intellectual disabilities. Tanis is an avid reader, swimmer, hiker, and skier. He is also a participant at Ready for Life, a life and work skills program.

Tanis has never let his blindness prevent him from moving up the fish ladder of life. He learns from every experience and uses each opportunity to set himself up for climbing to the next level. He also looks behind to pull others up along the way as he did in the blind and visually impaired program at East Grand Rapids Public Schools.

In 2018, Tanis, his family and the Wilcox family started the non-profit Beer City Dog Biscuits Company in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The mission of this company is to provide community and job training for individuals with all abilities. The “Brew Bakers”, a group of 200 individuals, are involved in every part of the business. The Brew Bakers participate in mixing, baking, packaging and marketing these “natural and delicious” dog treats.  Each treat is hand-made and packaged with care by the Brew Bakers, a team of disabled adults who are the core of the company culture and business process. 100% of the donations and sales of these products are reinvested into the company to support programs that enhance the personal and professional growth of the adults involved in the organization. 

If you visit the website: www.beercitydogbiscuits.org you will see the variety of dog biscuits that they prepare. It is enough to make a puppy drool, just looking at them!! They come in different flavors, such as blueberry and peanut butter. All the biscuits are made from nonalcoholic spent beer grains sourced from Founders Brewery in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The website will provide more information on how to order these delicious treats for your favorite canine. The treats can also be purchased at Pet Supplies Plus, Founders, Forest Hills Foods and many other retailers. By visiting the website, you can learn more about the business, its products and its mission and the role Tanis has had in making it a success, not only for himself but also for the many people he pulls along with him.

~ Patrick J. Droste, MS, MD