The stories people tell help us make sense of the world around us. We listen to their stories from the knowledge of our personal life experiences. Their stories can help us revise the way we see ourselves and help us think about our own experiences and opportunities in new ways based on learning from the experiences of others.
Do you have a story to tell too? Let us know about it by writing to familysupport@aed.org or call us at 877-535-7575.
The English interviews were conducted Alyne Ellis who has been an editor at NPR, a producer of museum and walking tours, and she's co-written a curriculum for radio classes. Her award winning documentaries include pieces on sign language and culture, and learning disabilities and teaching strategies. She has also produced nationally distributed tapes for NICHCY (National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities) on the IEP Process, meaningful employment of people with cognitive issues, and self esteem. Alyne currently hosts and produces a radio show for AARP called Prime Time Focus heard on over 500 stations and the web at www.aarp.org/radio.
Click on a photograph or name to hear and read the story.
Anonymous Mother
Does labeling your child's disability help or hurt him or her? When and how is it appropriate to tell your child about their disability and to explain it others? This mom of a child with non-verbal learning disability struggles with these questions. Listen to her story to hear what she's doing to answer them.
Anonymous Mother
This mother and her husband have a full and active household with four children, all of whom have disabilities. Listen and read what has been the key to keep things running smoothly.
Anonymous Mother
It took years for this mother and her husband to understand their son's distressing behavior. The mother talks about the long and winding path that lead to a diagnosis and describes what finally helped her decide to try something very different instead of more medication.
Kathleen Amaral
Knowledge certainly is power and brings much comfort as well. Hear how one mother empowers herself with the information to support her child.
Susan and Christina Battista
"We never say can't". Hear how this family motto has guided the Battista family helped them through challenges to make them opportunities.
Soon after Christina's birth her parents were told she might not live very long. Now at 30 years old, Christina shares what it is that drives her and she tells us about all she has to look forward to.
Sherri and Christiana Coles
Mom of three Sherri talks about sibling dynamics and her ideal for inclusion of her daughter.
Christiana, Sherri's daughter, tells us about her job and gives us some friendly tips about how to treat others.
Guywood Delacruz
Guywood lives with a visual impairment and has found his passion in music. Listen to his music and learn from his story about the importance music has in his life.
Morgan, Ronda and Steven Ebersole
Autism affects every individual and family differently. This mother and father open up about their experience raising their daughter and getting her the best education possible. Morgan shows us her favorite computer programs.
Myrto Flessas
Soon after giving birth, Myrto and her husband were faced with the bleak prediction that their son would die within a few hours. Hear and read where they are ten years later, with their son and his younger sister.
Brenda Gardiner
School classrooms are not for everyone. Homeschooling was the best choice these parents could make for their son Timmy, who has holoprosencephaly. Hear what their day-to-day life is like.
Clancy Keef
For this man, art has been a lifelong expression of who he is. More recently it's become the means to explain mental illness to others.
Dawn Kovach
Dawn's teachers labelled her slow and she has struggled with employers that didn't understand her disability. She's discovered a talent though that inspires her and also has become the means for her to support the environment.
Andraéa LaVant
Whether she´s in a school, moving to a new city, finding employment, or just hanging out with friends, this young woman living with muscular dystrophy accepts no barriers.
Althea McCluckie
When a child has significant disabilities life can seem very difficult. Althea’s daughter Seda, for example, has Anencephaly; she was born with a large portion of her brain missing. Seda’s mom talks about the joys and challenges of their life together; Seda is now thirteen.
Maggie Maclean
Successful student Maggie Maclean, who has high functioning autism, shares what got her to where she is now. She’s a college graduate with a valuable job skill.
Lynn McDonald
Listen as Lynn McDonald talks about adaptations that made her school experience easier and also about her current work as a guardian. For Lynn, finding the right support system, whether it includes friends, family or God, has been invaluable.
Terry and Lisa Mendell
Lisa Mendell uses a wheelchair and she says that's the last thing she wants people to notice. "Look at me," first is her motto and she's actively working and volunteering online and in the community. We caught up with her and her mom, Terry, at a Cash and Counseling conference.
Jean Mullins
Many parents struggle to get their kids to clean their rooms and get organized for school, but Jean has found it especially difficult for her son with ADD. She shares with us the creative ways she's used to improve her son's organization skills at home and at school.
Sheryl Nelson
"Being blind is not a hassle, it’s normal," says this advocate, adventurer, and story teller. It's just a matter of perception.
Kristine Nicholas
When you have three children with disabilities, how do you cope, particularly if they take different paths to understanding their identities. You have to figure out when to be hands on or hands off.
Georgie Nikolaidis
When you’re a blind water-skier it seems like nothing should ever stop you, but even so Georgie used to have trouble just getting down a hall from class to class. He tells us how his faith helped him reach for answers.
Doreen Reagan
This mother of two shares how her own struggle with learning disabilities in school has shaped her involvement with her sons' education.
Bridgette and Brandon Reeves
Finding help in a big city may seem much easier than in small towns and rural areas. Listen to Bridgette Reeves, who lives in rural South Carolina, explain how she helped her son Brandon and other families by starting a parents’ support group.
Brandon then talks about being home-schooled and his plans to go to a tech school in the near future.
Alex and Scott Ripley
It's an exciting time for Alex as he's recently left home and is creating a life for himself with an apartment, job opportunities, and new friends.
Alex’s dad, Scott, talks about Alex’s efforts to become independent and how his family helped him find a place for him to live that could meet his many medical needs and set some limits. It also provides him with many things he wants including the opportunity for a social life. Although he has also had to make some sacrifices.
Debbie Sharon
Debbie talks about her daughter April's budding business making pet treats and what they’re both doing to prepare for the day when April can “kick her mom” out and be more independent.
Cindy Slavens
Diagnosed with a chronic auto-immune condition at the age of 34, Cindy was given one year to live. She's accomplished much in the 20 years since. Hear what made the difference.
Kathie and Benjamin Snow
Is physical therapy for everyone? Parent Kathie rethinks her opinion on this when her son makes a special request.
Kathie's son Benjamin has found there are no limits, whether people label him or not.
Charles Spagnuolo and Stepdad John Ackiss
John Ackiss has taken an active role in his stepson Charles' life. Here he describes how autism affects Charles and how he as a parent has learned to phrase his own speech to make mutual communication easier and he shares the ways in which Charles has become an active athlete and member of his community.
Glenna Taylor
When one talks with parent Glenna Taylor, finding money and local support looks easy. She’s an energetic dynamo who worked with her son Kevin to find a job by creating one. Kevin, who runs stables for horses, now has self-esteem and standing in his local community.
Jeri and Barry Wasco
Jeri fills multiple roles each day as a mother, wife, self-advocate with a disability and coordinator for Ms. Wheelchair DC. "There's nothing she can't do," says Barry Wasco of his wife Jeri. In this couple's interview we learn how these family members support one another and those in their community.
Sylvia Williams
After raising four children, Sylvia and her husband were looking forward to being empty-nesters. Then Sylvia stepped in and became guardian for her grandson with Down Syndrome, an experience that she refers to as "a big present that just keeps opening".
Pat Wright
When a parent is battling depression, helping children who also have mental illness can be overwhelming. But mom Pat Wright has found a balance and knows when to give her adult children space and when to offer advice. She also talk about how her own needs have shaped her children's lives in a positive way.
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