Thank you teachers, parents, staff and students, legislators and community members for greeting me so warmly on such a chilly night.

There is so much friendliness here, so much energy. It could be 10 below, and I would NOT feel cold.

The Lewis school seems very much like a family. And I am honored that you have invited me to be part of your family celebration. I only wish I could have done this 40 years ago as a student!

Of course that was NOT possible. The Lewis School did NOT exist when I was growing up not far from here in Phillipsburg, NJ in the 1950s and 60s.

In fact, there were no special programs for kids with learning differences - because there was no such thing as a learning difference. There were only slow learners. Learners who were called stupid and put into the third reading group. Learners like me.

Today, we are able to identify many learning differences at a very early age. We know that people with learning differences can achieve their dreams with the right teaching and the right teachers. That is why the Lewis School exists. You have the right teaching and the right teachers.

But there are NOT enough Lewis Schools to go around. There are NOT enough teachers who know how to help kids with learning differences, or parents who understand that learning differences are NOT learning disabilities. That is why we are here tonight.

For the past 25 years, the students, staff and teachers here have lighted a tree to symbolize all those who have NOT yet found "The Gifts and the Great Possibilities" inside them.

There are too many who continue to struggle - knowing there is something different about them - but NOT knowing what. People who might sometimes get their words mixed up - like I did 40 years ago in church when I sang: "Praise dog, from whom all blessings flow." Instead of "praise God." Or "pears to the Lord," instead of "praise to the Lord."

I can still hear the laughter. And you know what? The laughing and the put-downs after all these years - still hurt. Because when somebody says you are slow, or dumb, and they tell you often enough, you start to wonder if they are right.

There are thousands of people like you and me, who are being told they are stupid. And who may even believe it themselves. They need people like us. People who will say to them: "Believe in yourself. You can do it. Discover 'The Gifts and the Great Possibilities' inside you."

I was lucky even though I was not diagnosed with dyslexia until I was 19. I had a loving family, and a supportive community. They did not know it then but their love had a profound, life-long impact on me. Without my friends, family, teachers - people who believed in me - I would NOT be standing here today. I had good friends around me who would NOT let me believe that I was stupid. I had my Mom and Dad, who taught me respect for myself and others. And who hired scores of tutors to help me learn because they never stopped believing that I could learn.

There were people like my minister. He did NOT laugh when I got the hymns wrong. Instead, he let me take a hymnal home so I could practice the words. So I could sing in church without being laughed at.

I had three big brothers, who also helped me growing up. Some of you with big brothers

Might have trouble imagining that. My brothers were not perfect either - but I looked up to them and they helped me as I struggled.

My football and wrestling coaches were there for me, too. They taught me to keep trying after getting knocked on my back, or missing a tackle. Or getting so discouraged I wanted to quit.

And I will always remember my teacher, Mr. DeFranco. When I got to the 8th grade,

Mr. DeFranco called me into his office. He said, "I am going to make you a patrol boy."

That was a proud day for Don Winkler, let me tell you! I was thrilled!

Patrol boys got badges, and a big red flag and got to stop cars!

But there was a catch - Mr. DeFranco said, "I am going to make you a patrol boy.

But first you have to raise your grades from 'D' to 'B'."

Know what? I made straight "B+s."

And I got the badge and the red flag and got to stop cars.

No, I did NOT have the Lewis School, but I was surrounded by love and support. People who saw "The Gifts and the Great Possibilities" inside me and gave me a chance to develop my talents.

It is important to give kids that support. To give them a place they can go and feel good about themselves. That place for me was the Firth Youth Center. I was good at electrical work, so they asked me to help out when they expanded the center. In fact, I just about wired the place myself.

When word got around that this was a special talent of mine, I started fixing irons, fans, TVs - you name it. I think I fixed every toaster that broke in Phillipsburg from 1962 to 1965.

[Winkler motions toward tree.]

If you have any trouble with the lights on this tree, ask me. I can fix it!

The point is - being good at something helped me believe in myself. People gave me the chance to prove that I had talents - that I was worth something.

All this time, I still wondered what was wrong with me - why I learned so differently. I was in my second year in college when I finally figured out what was wrong. I was dyslexic. That was pretty scary for a young man just starting out.

But I remembered what my parents and my minister, my teachers and my coaches, and all my friends had said to me. They all said: "Don, believe in yourself. You can do it."

I decided that dyslexia was only a difference - a difference in the way I look at things. That difference has become a big advantage in my job. I look at things differently. I can think of new ways to solve old problems. I have discovered "The Gifts and the Great Possibilities" inside me.

Does that mean it has been easy? No way!

Dyslexia is never cured. You learn to live with it.

Every day is still a challenge. I cry some mornings. I laugh other mornings. But I still have the desire to succeed. I still have the support of my friends and my family. They helped me discover what is special about me. And life is good.

Tonight, we remember the many people who have NOT discovered the best that is inside them. Many of these people, both young and old, have never had anyone say to them: "Believe in yourself. You can do it." Or if they did, they did not believe it.

[Winkler motion towards tree.]

The 100,000 lights on this tree represent 100,000 people just like you and me - people who have great gifts and talents. Only their talents remain hidden behind a curtain of learning differences.

I am here tonight because I know there is something we can do to raise that curtain. Many of you parents and teachers are already advocates for early detection of LD. But we need to do more.

As wonderful as the Lewis School is, it CANNOT begin to serve all the people represented by the lights on this tree. We should be fighting tooth and nail, NOT just for our own children, but for the majority of children with learning differences who remain in the mainstream - in the public schools. We should be fighting to raise awareness in a society that often does not understand - or know what to do about learning differences. We should be fighting to improve teacher education in this area - both at the college level and after teachers enter the classroom.

Talk to your legislators. Tell the lawmakers of New Jersey that we can NOT be satisfied with only some kids getting the help they need. Tell them you want every child to discover "The Gifts and the Great Possibilities" hidden inside them!

So, when these lights are turned on in a few minutes, think of those lights as people who are waiting to be helped.

But also think of your own light. And how you might let it shine for someone else. You can be that light to anyone who is struggling. You can be the person who says: "Believe in yourself. You can do it! I am your friend."

Since we are gathered around a tree, I would like to end with a story about a tree. It is an old story now, written more than 30 years ago by Shel Silverstein. It is one of my favorite stories.

I told it to my own children when they were small, and I tell it to grown-ups whenever I have the chance.

It is called "The Giving Tree." And it goes like this.

Once there was a tree ... and she loved a little boy. Every day, the boy would come and gather her leaves. He would swing from her branches and climb her trunk. He sat in her shade and he ate her apples. The boy loved the tree very much, and the tree was very happy. But time went by and the tree was often alone.

One day the boy returned to the tree. He was older now and needed money to live. So the tree gave him her apples to sell in the city. The boy carried her apples away. And the tree was very happy.

Many years passed before the boy returned. This time he told the tree he needed wood so that he could build a home for his family. The tree gave him her branches, and once again she was happy. When the boy's family had grown and moved on, and the boy had aged many years, he returned to the tree.

The tree offered him her trunk so that he could build a boat and sail away. And so he did, and the tree was very happy. After a very long time, the boy returned once again, when the tree was just a stump, and the boy was very, very old.

She told the boy that she was sorry, that she had nothing left to give. But the boy was old and didn't need very much. So the tree gave him a quiet place to sit and rest. And they were both very, very happy.

My family, my friends, my teachers - they have been my tree. They have given to me again and again - even when they had little left to give.

I am a lucky guy - and I am very, very happy.

Tonight begins your opportunity to be that tree for someone in need.

[Winkler holds up seedling.]

Some students are coming around now with a seedling for each one of you. It is your very own Giving Tree. Plant it. Nourish it. Help it grow.

And let it remind you to give to those who need it most. Give encouragement and direction. Give reassurance. Give love and support. Give someone a place to rest when they are tired and want to give up. Help someone discover "The Gifts and the Great Possibilities" inside them. Tell them: "Believe in yourself! You can do it!" And they will succeed.

Those words have a wonderful sound, don't they? They are simple words, yet magic words ' because they open the door to every possibility. Next to "I love you," they are the most important words you will ever hear.

And so, in closing, I will say them once again. Boys and girls, parents and teachers and friends -- believe in yourselves. Never give up. Together, we can do it!

Thank you. Have a wonderful holiday.