When he was 5-years-old, a homemade grenade he found during a game of hide-and-seek took his sight and his hands. Now, he’s employee of the year!
SAN ANTONIO — Israel Bolivar doesn’t let his disabilities define him.
“I was able to survive and now here I am,” he said.
Bolivar is currently a Vibrant Works employee. Vibrant Works used to be known as San Antonio Lighthouse for the Blind and Vision Impaired. They employ people who are blind or visually impaired.
On Wednesday, Bolivar learned he was named the 2025 Peter J. Salmon Employee of the Year by the National Industries For The Blind. He was selected out of 42 nominees across the country. His bosses and fellow colleagues surprised him with the news.
“It is how I felt, they moved the floor from under me,” he said. “I was floating. It was an amazing sensation.”
However, to get to this point in life it has not been an easy journey for Bolivar. His life forever changed when he was five years old. At the time, he was living in Colombia and was playing hide-and-seek with his friends.
“I decided to hide under my neighbor’s bed at his house,” he said. “I found what was a ball for me to play with wrapped in paper.”
But it was no ball. It was a homemade grenade that exploded in his hands.
“It caused me to lose my hands and my sight,” he said. “And I went in a coma for nine months.”
He had multiple surgeries, which took a long time to recover and adjust to his new life.
“I use my disabilities as my abilities to push me forward,” he said.
Not being able to see or have hands has not stopped Bolivar who is now 38 years old. He’s part of the Vibrant Works manufacturing team, and is a full-time sander that helps finish floorboards for military aircrafts.
“Just because I have no hands and no sight, that doesn’t make me not normal,” he said. “I treat myself like a normal person.”
Bolivar reminds others they can push forward just like he does every single day.
“Push forward and be somebody in the world,” he said.
Bolivar also has a bachelor’s in psychology degree. He came to San Antonio in 2019 after hearing about Vibrant Works. His wife also works there. Bolivar will formally receive his national award in Washington, D.C. next February.