ST PETERSBURG, Fla. - As a middle school student, Davon Miller remembers watching the clock and counting down the moments until the school day ended.
Clocks became an inspiration for the main character in his children’s books.
“He’s someone who always tries to look at the bright side of things,” said Miller, speaking of ‘Mr. Tickety-Toc Clock’. “He loves to promote literacy.”
Miller and his character share that trait. Miller, now a 15-year-old student at Lakewood High School, volunteers a few days per week at the Roy Hanna Library near his home. He has published three ‘Mr. Tickety-Toc Clock’ books and plans to release a fourth this spring.
“I tell his mom all the time how proud she should be of him because he is a wonderful young man,” said June Thornton, who works at the library. “He’s very focused, always on task.”
Miller held his first book signing at the library. He decided to use his books help make an impact on a hospital that helped him when he was young.
“When he was little, every time you turned around, we were in and out of the hospital,” said Davon’s dad, Dewitt. “He was always having asthma attacks.”
His mother, Sandra, is extremely proud of what her son has done.
“We donate part of the proceeds to the Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital asthma foundation because when he was three months old he was diagnosed with severe asthma until he was seven years old," she said.
Davon says he has a lot of books “in the works," using his talents to help kids learn to embrace reading and overcome asthma at the same time.
“I was just so amazed to see someone so young, so talented, so interested in books,” said Thornton. “He’s just a filter for knowledge.”
Davon has received letters from former President Barack Obama thanking him for his contributions to the community through his books. He also got a personal letter from former First Lady Michelle Obama.
“Kids open the book, the grasp on to it and are like, ‘hey, maybe I’ll pick up another book’,” he said.
►Make it easy to keep up to date with more stories like this. Download the 10 News app now.
Have a news tip? Email tips@wtsp.com, visit our Facebook page or Twitter feed.
