Imagine yourself growing up in a world different from others, feeling and knowing that something was different and you just couldn’t point it out.

You finally get enough courage to ask your mother, “What makes me so different?”

But your words cannot be heard. You have no voice, and no one can hear a word
you say.

City College student Tiffany Cunningham, a 26-year-old nursing major, is someone
who has been through all this.

She was born weighing only 2 pounds, 8 ounces, already enough for Cunningham’s mother to take. But what sealed the deal for her was finding out her baby did not have a voice box, which meant she couldn’t cry, yell, scream or make any other noises.

Dealing with the burden of not being able to speak, Cunningham learned how
to use sign language and develop the skills needed to communicate to her loved ones and friends.

“I had to use (sign) till I was about 5 years old,” says Cunningham, a Regional Transit bus operator. “I still know how to use it today.”

But this still didn’t change why Cunningham felt empty inside. She knew that if nothing changed, she would still feel empty inside.

“My mother used to tell me that my pediatric doctor really was interested in me,”
she says. “He felt bad and had never seen a case like me.”

The doctor did make a promise to Cunningham to help her find her voice. He traveled to Japan to learn a new procedure that would let him re-build the voice box that Cunningham was missing. This procedure took five years to complete, which consisted of countless surgeries and skin grafts.

The end result? A new Cunningham who could speak to her heart’s desire.

What she had dreamed of for so long was now a reality, but still came with a price. Cunningham’s voice box limits her from speaking loudly and makes it difficult for her to breathe.

“It took some time getting used to,” says Cunningham, with a soft tone. “I had to go to different therapy classes to learn how to talk and adjust to the new changes.”

She says she still has trouble with her breathing, but has no problem having a normal conversation with friends and family.

“Yeah, I’ve had it rough when I was a child, but everyone goes through that,” she
says. “It’s how you turn out in the end, and I think I’ve turned out great.”