Successful Mississippi producer pursues visual arts without eyesight

NEELY, Miss. - “I literally went to bed and woke up totally blind," said successful theatrical director and producer, Mackenzie Westmoreland as he lightly swayed on his father's porch swing. He explained in detail his first time experiencing great fear.

“Let’s make a plan. The first thing we need to do is go to a doctor, see if this is permanent, see if this is some sort of weird fluke, if it’s something that is reversible,” However, when his medical results came in, Westmoreland was informed of his permanent blindness.

“I wasn’t worried about it anymore. What was going to be, was going to be. I just knew that it would be a different way of approaching life,”

He went on to co-produce successful movies including The Historian and The Hollow. He continued to thrive through theatrical productions and even headlined as a keynote speaker for several engagements.

“I realized in my mid-twenties that it was a passion of mines. Like, I just loved theater. I loved the interactions, working with actors, working designers, working with people who are very good in their field. The thought of having to stop that just because I couldn’t see was not something I was willing to accept,”

Mackenzie Westmoreland shard when people use your skills to help someone through a momentary crisis, they feel on top of the world.

“God does not put a mountain in our path in order to block our way. God puts a mountain in our path to so we have an opportunity to stand on top of the world,”

Westmoreland continues to pursue his passion in New York producing shows.