David Gallegos has dealt with an array of struggles throughout his life, including losing his sight. He has risen above them and is now inspiring others.
David Gallegos is on a Journey of Resilience and Advocacy
September 30, 2024
His tenacity has helped him face challenges and drove him to pursue a degree at Aims Community College to study psychology to support others through their life paths.
David is from Texas and moved to Greeley three years ago. He was attending community college in Texas and wanted to continue his education when he moved here. “I started searching for different options in Northern Colorado,” he said. “When I looked at Aims, it felt like a perfect fit with that family community feel I was looking for.
His journey hasn’t been straightforward, but David believes that “it's never too late to start, and it doesn’t have to be completed in one straight path.”
Overcoming Adversity
David’s mindset and orientation to help were shaped by his struggles with his mental and physical health. He said he was a “horrible child” and dealt with anger issues. David was hospitalized by the age of 12 due to depression. “It manifested as rage,” he said. David was not a good student in high school and battled with mental illness for most of his life.
He became a father at 17 when his first wife became pregnant with their daughter, an experience that came at a time when David was still grappling with depression and the challenges of early adulthood. Despite the difficulties, he embraced fatherhood and later remarried, finding a lasting partnership with Brenda, his second wife. Together, they raised two children — David’s son and daughter from his first marriage — who were just three and six years old when they married. Today, their children are 26 and 23, and David is also a proud grandfather to a seven-year-old grandson.
Shortly after David married Brenda, he lost his sight due to diabetes. He also spent 18 days in a coma. “I also wound up with kidney failure, so I was on dialysis for a few years,” he said. “I've now been transplanted, so I've got a new kidney and a new pancreas, slightly used, but they're great.”
“I'm not Daredevil. I don't have superpowers, so your hearing doesn't get better. You just learn to pay attention, so listen for certain things.”
As a young adult, he says he found Christianity and was “completely delivered from depression.” David’s family and health issues were two pivotal forces that dramatically transformed his mental health. Before losing his vision, he struggled with depression and even suicidal thoughts throughout much of his early life. However, the challenges of blindness became a turning point for his mental well-being. Instead of succumbing to despair, David found clarity and strength in the face of his disability, primarily due to the unwavering support of his family and his faith in God. David deepens his faith through his role in Mercy Church in Greeley, a community-centered church he helped establish alongside friends from Texas.
Campus Life and a Desire to Help Others
After enduring these challenges, he faced another obstacle. He went back to school in his 30s. David’s academic journey as a blind student has been challenging and transformative. Navigating college without sight has required significant adaptations and persistence, especially as he has never attended school under such conditions before.
David relies on technology, the support of Aims' Disability Access Services, and his own problem-solving skills to access course materials and engage in class activities. While specific tasks, such as handling physical textbooks or participating in group discussions, present unique obstacles, David remains undeterred. His determination is reflected in his advocacy for more inclusive classrooms, where students’ learning styles and needs are considered before registering. By using a cane for mobility, depending on assistive technology, and drawing on his resourcefulness, David approaches his education as an ongoing adventure, tackling every hurdle with resilience and a positive mindset.
David is active in the Student Government Association (SGA), serving as the Vice President of Academic Affairs. Drawing from his experience attending a satellite campus in Texas, where he felt disconnected from the main campus, David has made it his mission to ensure that the Windsor, Fort Lupton and Loveland campuses receive the same resources and opportunities as the Greeley Campus. He’s working to create a sense of unity across all campuses by organizing events, improving communication, and advocating for equal access to student services and activities. David’s leadership within the SGA is driven by his belief that every student should feel embraced by the Aims community, no matter their location.
David is helping others in the community, as well. “I'm also a coach and a speaker — I do some motivational speaking,” he said. He started his own business, Recalibrated Mindset Coaching, to mentor others.
“I help empower people to stress less, embrace life for the good, bad, ugly, ridiculous, or whatever it might be, and just live life to the fullest with boldness and competence.”
David’s Next Step
Despite life's unexpected challenges, David embraces every day as an adventure. His story of perseverance and growth shows that it’s never too late to return to education, even in the face of significant obstacles.
After graduating from Aims in the spring of 2025, he plans on completing a bachelor’s degree in psychology at the University of Northern Colorado. David sees his academic journey as more than just a personal goal — it’s a path to helping others through counseling and coaching, inspired by his experiences with adversity.
