Requests for support from families who have children with diverse abilities come in all, shapes, forms and sizes. Sometimes the requests are for long term support, sometimes they are for a specific situation, and sometimes they are for both.
Bethesda’s family support team, comprising of Rodney Wiebe and Jeremy Vis, often don’t know what to expect when meeting a family for the first time. They approach each family with love and compassion and carry on the Bethesda tradition of “doing whatever it takes” to support them.
Rodney says, “So much of support is knowing you are not alone to figure out the best path forward. Systems and processes for receiving services can be overwhelming to people who are already feeling anxious.” Rodney speaks also from personal experience, having three teens, two with diverse abilities. This firsthand experience gives him empathy as well as valuable practical knowledge of how to access support for a wide range of situations that come up for families.
Rodney (at right), leads Family Support services. He meets with families who have children with diverse abilities and supports them to access services, solve problems, respond to crises, and find the grace to deal with the everyday challenges of life.
Jeremy adds, “Family support can be hard to explain to people because the things people come to us with are so diverse. I think of it as offering a lifeline. People usually contact us when they are feeling overwhelmed, so listening and offering a path forward is encouraging to them.”
Rodney agrees, “Sometimes you see the burden lift right in front of you, it’s such a blessing to be able to offer hope.”
Last year, a family reached out to Rodney and Jeremy and shared that they have a large family. Eight of their children have diverse abilities. The parents were struggling.
Parents in such a situation often need to attend meetings at different agencies in order to secure the support that each child needs. These meetings can be intimidating and uncomfortable. Their request was simple, could someone from Bethesda attend this meeting with them, to help make sense of the what was being said and to help them walk through the decisions they would have to make?
Bethesda was happy to be there with them at that meeting. We continue to support the family as they journey through this life; a life that is a little more complicated due to their commitment to love and support all the children they were blessed with.
Another family contacted the family support team because their daughter with diverse abilities was unable to bear weight on her leg and would require surgery. This meant that she could not get to high school without a special vehicle that was wheelchair accessible. Bethesda explored using one of its vans, but in the end decided that a wheelchair accessible taxi would be the best option. Arrangements were made to pay for this taxi. As it turned out, the family was able to secure other arrangements that worked, but it was a pleasure to know that Bethesda did have the ability to help this young lady attend her high school if the need was there.
Another form of family support is our family support group. Once per month a group of parents, mostly mothers at this point, meet at our main office to enjoy a cup of coffee, maybe a Timbit™ or two, and to share how things are going with their families.
When a burden is shared, it often becomes less frightening or at least more manageable. Sitting together and praying is always a life-giving activity, and we do this at our meetings. We also take those prayer requests through the month and continue to hold them up in prayer until we can meet again and see how things have been going.
Others are often unable to understand that families’ struggles are different when there are family members with diverse abilities. Having a place where there is an understanding of what it is like to support children or siblings with diverse abilities is a huge blessing.
The above stories illustrate big and small situations real families encounter. We are able to help them only with the incredible generosity and commitment of Bethesda’s donors. We ask for donations so we can offer services to families that often have no other place to turn.
They say it takes a village to raise a child, but sometimes the village is needed longer. Often people with diverse abilities and their families need the village all their lives. At Bethesda, our family support helps families grow their village in many different ways. If you would like to be part of this mission, consider becoming a monthly donor to help us fulfill this calling. For as little as $25/month, you will be supporting families in all the ways shared above and more.
