Says Janice Nodvin, program director of the adult Down syndrome program at the Institute for the Study of Disadvantage and Disability, a nonprofit advocacy organization based in Atlanta, about her now 29-year-old son Evan in today’s Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
“Evan is a man, and he should always be treated as a man, even though we sometimes have to help him out.”
While doctors predicted that Evan would not live until adulthood, he now works at a senior adult day care center, lives on his own, takes public transportation, votes. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution article is about the issues facing the aging parents of developmentally …read more

Since Charlie had Thursday off from school, I took the train to work so he and Jim could have the car. Almost every seat was taken when I got on and I settled into a windowless row by the door. Neither the air-conditioning nor the lights were working. I put my coffee cup between my feet, pulled my bag (front pockets well-stocked with Kleenex and the other matériel one needs to get through a bad cold) onto my lap, and shut my eyes, and hoped I’d be able to keep my voice going through the day.
We three have been passing …read more

Something that we are preparing to create for Charlie. A definition from Michael Davidov, Esq., in the April 30th Queens Courier:
A Special Needs Trust ensures that its beneficiary receives the benefit of assets transferred to the trust, while permitting the beneficiary to retain access to public government resources. Parents do not need to wait until their child turns eighteen before setting up a Special Needs Trust. Once the trust is established, the parents can place funds in the trust and the funds can be used immediately or stored for future use.
Under the terms of a Special Needs Trust, a Trustee …read more