Ben Carson was born on September 15, 1951 in Detroit, Michigan. He and his brother, Curtis, were raised by their single mother, Sonya, since he was eight years old. When their father left, they moved to Boston to live with Sonya’s sister, and then moved back to Detroit.
They were very poor and Sonya had to work multiple jobs. She only had a third grade education and therefore, had limited options for work. She was very frugal with money, shopped at Goodwill, and picked farmer’s crops in exchange for a portion of the produce. Sonya taught her sons that anything was possible and greatly influenced their lives. Ben had always dreamed of being a doctor and his mother’s encouragement helped get him there.
When he was young, the ridiculing by his classmates for his trouble with school caused him to have anger issues and a severe temper. This lead to him stabbing his friend with a knife over a feud in radio stations. The knife broke on the boys belt and that saved his life. For three hours after that incident, Ben sat in a bathroom and mulled over what he almost did. He realized that God was with him and could change his life. That was a turning point for him.
When Ben and his brother would have difficulty in school and fall to the bottom of their classes, Sonya commenced to having them watching less TV and reading more. She made them write reports on the books they had read that week, even though she could not read them with her poor schooling. Within weeks they were doing better in school and soon Ben felt that reading empowered him. He rose to the top of his class by 8th grade and continued to read and learn. He eventually graduated with honors in high school. Ben went to Yale University and earned a psychology degree. He then attended the medical school at the University of Michigan and switched from studying psychology to neurosurgery. He began as a neurosurgery resident, and then became the Director of Pediatric Neurosurgery at John Hopkins Hospital. He remained in that position for 29 years.
They were very poor and Sonya had to work multiple jobs. She only had a third grade education and therefore, had limited options for work. She was very frugal with money, shopped at Goodwill, and picked farmer’s crops in exchange for a portion of the produce. Sonya taught her sons that anything was possible and greatly influenced their lives. Ben had always dreamed of being a doctor and his mother’s encouragement helped get him there.
When he was young, the ridiculing by his classmates for his trouble with school caused him to have anger issues and a severe temper. This lead to him stabbing his friend with a knife over a feud in radio stations. The knife broke on the boys belt and that saved his life. For three hours after that incident, Ben sat in a bathroom and mulled over what he almost did. He realized that God was with him and could change his life. That was a turning point for him.
When Ben and his brother would have difficulty in school and fall to the bottom of their classes, Sonya commenced to having them watching less TV and reading more. She made them write reports on the books they had read that week, even though she could not read them with her poor schooling. Within weeks they were doing better in school and soon Ben felt that reading empowered him. He rose to the top of his class by 8th grade and continued to read and learn. He eventually graduated with honors in high school. Ben went to Yale University and earned a psychology degree. He then attended the medical school at the University of Michigan and switched from studying psychology to neurosurgery. He began as a neurosurgery resident, and then became the Director of Pediatric Neurosurgery at John Hopkins Hospital. He remained in that position for 29 years.