by Guest Author | Aug 25, 2017 | BABY, Extended Family, Home Life, Individuals, New Mom/Dad, RELATIONSHIPS, YOU
Delaney Beatty is the daughter of Lisa Richard, our Rural Outreach Specialist at the Center for Family Involvement. Delaney wrote the following essay as part of the application process for medical school. She is currently living in Tennessee with her new husband and...
by Erin Croyle | Jul 17, 2017 | BABY, Diagnosis, Extended Family, Friends and Acquaintances, Grandparents, New Mom/Dad, RELATIONSHIPS
Time has tremendous healing powers. But the deepest cuts always leave a scar, regardless of how many years fly by. I was talking to a parent recently who was in that terrible time right after a diagnosis; the fog where you question everything. You think about every...
by Erin Croyle | Aug 4, 2016 | Advocacy, Extended Family, Friends and Acquaintances, Grandparents, In-laws, Individuals, Parents, RELATIONSHIPS, Self-Advocacy, Uncategorized, YOU
I am constantly amazed at how it is still OK to be openly prejudiced against people with disabilities. Racists typically hide their racism or are called out on it immediately. Homophobia is no longer tolerated. But bigotry towards the disability community gets a pass....
by Erin Croyle | Jun 15, 2016 | Extended Family, Finding Balance, Friends and Acquaintances, Parents, RELATIONSHIPS
I don’t like to offer up the fact that my oldest child has Down syndrome. It comes up in conversation from time to time; and I almost always regret mentioning it. Afterward I rehash those conversations trying to figure out what possessed me to bring it up. My son’s...
by Guest Author | May 4, 2016 | Extended Family, Help, Individuals, Parents, RELATIONSHIPS, Self-Advocacy, Uncategorized, YOU
by Angela West I always knew I wanted to work with families who had children with disabilities. While I was getting my master’s degree at Virginia Commonwealth University, I envisioned myself working at the state level. Once I started interviewing after...
by Erin Croyle | Apr 6, 2016 | Caregivers, Extended Family, Finding Balance, Grandparents, Help, Parents, RELATIONSHIPS, Uncategorized, YOU
Nothing can prepare you for the moment you find out your child has a disability. It slams into you like a freight train. As we pick up the pieces of our former selves and put them back together, we become more informed, worldly, and compassionate people. It’s a...