If there’s someone can force you to look past whatever obstacles (perceived and real) stand in the way of doing what you love, it’s probably Mark “Big Toe”Goffeney.
Mark, a 49-year-old native of San Diego, was born into a family filled with musicians, so it would make perfect sense for him to follow in their footsteps. But here’s the hitch: He was born without arms.
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But once bit by the musical bug, there was no looking back. He took up the trombone in grade school, then switched over to the guitar. When he was just nine years old, his dad found him a guitar in a garbage dump – one that only had four strings – and he got a friend to teach him how to play.
It took a while to get the hang of it, but he finally found his rhythm: Placing the guitar flat on the floor, he learned to strum with his left foot and create chords with his right.
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Despite his disability, Mark became so skilled that he soon created a name for himself in the music world. He took on dual roles as bassist and vocalist as the co-founding member of the band “Big Toe”in the mid-1990s before releasing his first album in 1999. The best thing about performing, he told Business Insider, is seeing people’s overjoyed reactions:
Sometimes when I’m performing live and I get a reaction from the audience where I can tell that they are totally with me. It’s in their face. It’s in their movement. It’s in their smiles. And there’s no feeling like that.
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Mark was even nominated for an Emmy in 1998 for his role in the Fox Network commercial, “Feet.”In it, a man does everything with his feet, including changing his baby’s diaper. Why? Because he can’t pry his eyes off a football game.
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According to a 2016 article from Business Insider, Mark’s even opened for some of the biggest names in rock, Journey, Def Leppard, and Tom Petty, just to name a few.
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He loves playing in big venues, but for the meantime, he’s content playing to smaller crowds in and around San Diego.
But he’s quick to clarify that he collects tips, not donations.
I only want people to tip me if they feel entertained — it’s a tip, not a donation. I know how to work a crowd of 10 to 10,000 and would love the opportunity to play in some big venues. I feel qualified to and those turning up would have a good time.
Check out one of his crowd-pleasing performances, “Wild World”by Cat Stevens, in the clip below. Please share this story if it inspired you to follow your dreams, no matter how impossible they may seem!
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