Answer Man, who is Blind Dave and what does he see?

Terri Courtney-Miller, of Springfield, has a question for me. She called and mentioned that when she drives to work on North Campbell Avenue she sees a piece of graffiti that says "Blind Dave sees all." She wants to know: Who is Blind Dave and what does he see?

David John "Blind Dave" Newman was bright, funny and engaging. People loved him.

He could also be a mean drunk, says his mother, and was a drug addict. He died of a heroin overdose Dec. 7 at age 36.

David was born with cataracts in his eyes and he later had glaucoma. He was nearly blind his entire life.

But this impairment did not keep him from jumping freight cars and hitchhiking across the country, usually with his service dog.

He was in and out of prison three times from 2000 to 2003. The original offense was felony forgery. He was placed on probation without jail time but repeatedly violated those terms and was sent to prison. In 2013 he was placed on probation for misdemeanor assault: He spit on a police officer.

It's harder to know exactly what the graffiti means without talking to the unknown tagger.

At least two "Blind Dave sees all" graffiti are in Springfield. One, as mentioned, is on North Campbell Avenue. The other is on an abandoned building at College Avenue and Kansas Expressway — southbound traffic can see it clearly. Springfield police were unaware of the Blind Dave graffiti. They focus instead on gang graffiti, says spokeswoman Lisa Cox.

Marji Hughes, 54, of Willard, is David's mother. She says the graffiti went up soon after her son's Dec. 10 memorial service at Doling Park. She assumes it is the work of a friend, or friends, of her son. She wrote a touching and honest obituary regarding her son's life.

What is the meaning of "Blind Dave sees all"?

Her interpretation is that her son could sit only a few feet from someone and not be able to see the color of their hair or the expression on their face. But, in turn, he had a gift unrelated to sight. He somehow could cut to the core of a person. In his own way, he could see the inner substance of people.

"He could see through the fluff and get to the meat of something," she says.

Marji sits on a sofa in her living room. On the wall hangs a sign she made with an artist's touch. It says: Blessed are the Weird People.

Lazing on the floor is Odin, age 12, an American pit bull who was her son's service dog and travel companion.

"David saw past the façade," she says. "He saw things that most of us try to ignore: the injustice, the struggles, the pain."

After David was born, Marji says, her doctor informed her that she had been exposed to the German measles in her second trimester, which led to David contracting congenital rubella syndrome and his vision impairment.

She says her son had an IQ of 152 and his corrected vision — with thick glasses — was 20/800. Someone with normal vision can see an object at 800 feet that David could only see at 20 feet or less. He was legally blind — which is defined as 20/200 vision or worse.

In his early teens, Marji says, David smoked marijuana and huffed paint and gasoline. He later abused alcohol and heroin, she says.

In her opinion, David was not trying to deaden the pain of being almost blind.

"He became a drug addict because he was genetically predisposed," she says. "And he was more curious than he should have been."

Marji, a retired nurse, says she is a former drug addict. She used amphetamines and has been clean for 25 years.

David's mother and stepfather helped David financially. He also received disability, panhandled and worked odd jobs that he would quit after only a few months.

Whitney Dennis, 26, was David's girlfriend. He was thoughtful and generous, she says. And he was angry and sad.

This is how Whitney interprets "Blind Dave sees all":

"It definitely does not mean he is an angel watching over us. He was just a really wise man — wise and kind."

Katie Zehner and David years ago hopped freight trains and lived a nomad's life in California. Katie, now 30, is a recovering addict. She attended David's memorial service.

"That is probably the single, hardest thing I ever had to do in my life," she says. "I could not handle it."

Following the service she relapsed, overdosed on heroin and was rushed to the hospital.

Here's what "Blind Dave sees all" means to her.

"Dave had such a thirst for knowledge and he wanted to independently study things and understand why the world is the way it is and who he is and who his friends are. His life was a search for knowledge, a search for understanding. Now that he is gone he has finally — I hope — found that understanding. He can see us all and he can help guide us in our lives and in our struggles."

'I'm a little scared of overdoing it'

(The following was written by David Newman to a friend three weeks before he died of a heroin overdose. His mother Marji Hughes did not know he had relapsed until his death. She obtained various texts and messages from David's phone and computer after he died and provided them to the News-Leader. David wrote the following three weeks before his death. )

Nov. 14, 2014

"Sorry if I worried you with my message earlier. I've been really depressed lately. My school work is suffering, and I'm still using.

"This makes me more depressed and on it goes. The worst part is I can't share this with anyone, not even my mom. I mean I can always go to a stupid meeting, but the people I love can't know ... except you. I feel safe.

"Even if you have nothing to say, I know you understand. It sucks though. I've never had to do the whole double-life thing. Never had a reason to.

"Anyway, I'm sorry to whine at you. You'd think I'd be beyond this by now. I'm not though and it's getting worse.

"I keep doing these staggeringly large shots that don't ever seem to get me high enough .. I'm a little scared of overdoing it. I'm also scared of coming off. I just feel really alone right now and sometimes I don't know exactly what it is I'm trying to save ... Sorry again. I hope you are well. Keep getting stronger. Look forward to seeing you. Love you."

These are the views of Steve Pokin, the News-Leader's columnist. Pokin has been at the paper three years and over the course of his career has covered just about everything — from courts and cops to features and fitness. He can be reached at 836-1253, spokin@gannett.com, on Twitter @stevepokinNL or by mail at 651 N. Boonville, Springfield, MO 65806.

