James Beldon, Sr., a graduate of Ohio School for the Deaf (OSD) was inducted into the OSD's Hall of Fame and awarded the honor as a distinguished alumni for being the first Deaf Basketball Official in the State of Ohio. His family and friends call him Dr Zebra - D stands for Deaf, R for Referee, and Zebra for the black and white striped shirt.

He actively refereed both hearing and deaf basketball games for 32 years. James established the first 3-crew of all deaf officials for regional and national levels. He also assembled the first crew of all deaf basketball officials at the national level in Akron, Ohio in 1994. His passion is for all deaf basketball officials to be recognized as professionals in the United States. Referee James retired in 2015 at the age of 72. However, James still plays Senior League Softball, a ballplayer for 65 years.