Stories from the Village

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All of us who have a special child know that one of the first questions we ask ourselves is, How will we do this? We also begin to ask what our hopes and goals are for our angels. In time, we realize that the “how” comes from the strength of our love for them, and that, in truth, our hopes for them are no different than for any other child. We simply want them to be happy. And for any of us to be truly happy, we cannot simply be cared for—we also need the opportunity to be as independent as possible.

Having an Angel child means that life will be filled with many unique challenges, while at the same time bringing equally unique blessings. Seeing the world through their innocent eyes is one of my favorite gifts. Another is their natural sense of community, which reminds us of our own spiritual nature and our deep need for connection. It does not matter whether one of our Angels cannot speak, cannot hear, has sensory sensitivities, or faces other communication or social challenges. There will always be people they simply want to be near. Like most of us, they are often drawn to those with whom they share something in common. I believe that is one of the reasons so many of our Angels love school so much. In fact, they really love school.

Our daughter came to live for school. It was clearly a place where she felt independent. Despite never wanting us out of her sight during most of the day, she did not want us lingering in her classroom for even a second longer than necessary. She would pack purses full of toys in preparation for the school day, show us pictures and ask when she could go again on days off, and her world began to revolve around being with her friends and teachers. School gave her purpose, pride, and a sense of independence that made her truly happy. I would be remiss if I did not also mention the respite it provided for her mother and me. Our lives still had many challenges, but we had accomplished our main objective—we had helped our Angel find happiness and purpose, and school was a central part of that rhythm and routine.

Then one day, it was over. In an instant, she had aged out of school and had nowhere to go.

We began searching for what would come next. Sara is brilliant and highly intelligent in many ways, but assisted work programs and higher-level education centers were not an option for her. She is nonverbal, physically handicapped, deaf, and developmentally delayed. She became deeply depressed, which broke our hearts, because despite the cruelty of her health challenges she had always been such a happy person. We had begun searching long before that day arrived and had visited several institutional and private day habilitation programs. Yet everything we saw felt either clinical, not suited for her level of need, or disqualified individuals with continence issues.

Then we found Heather’s Old Skool Village.

What Brenda and Heather have created here is something truly special. From our very first visit, we knew we had found a new home. We had often dreamed about creating something like this ourselves if we had the ability to do so. Instead, we found Brenda—someone who actually made that dream a reality.

Once again, Sara packs her bags in preparation for her important day. On days off, she asks when she will get to return. She shows pictures of Heather’s and does her best to tell me about her day when I get home. It has been a lifeline and a source of fulfillment not only for our Angel, but for our entire family.

What Brenda and Heather have created is very special. It is not an institution. It is a family and a community that comes together to provide purpose, relationships, respite, a sense of belonging, and structure.

We are deeply proud and grateful to be part of Heather’s Old Skool Village.

Thank You,

Mike, Debi and Sara Burgett