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Susccess Stories: Caleb

FUND IT FORWARD received this letter from his father:

At the age of 2, Caleb was diagnosed with Angelman Syndrome. This genetic confirmation was in a way a culmination of a 2-year search for what was the root cause of Caleb's difficulties in life. Trouble nursing, sleepless nights as an infant, delayed walking, feeding issues, lack of speech development, and the list goes on. Although it was terrible news, it allowed us to reset, to grieve, to cope, and to move on with a higher resolve. Within weeks of his diagnosis, Caleb's seizures were under control with meds, he was walking, and he had a newborn sister (Myla).

Fast-forward 2 years, Caleb is now 4 and continues to make strides that leave us awestruck. He is using an iPad to communicate wants and needs, he is experiencing a typical preschool environment and making friends, he is working on riding a bike and swimming, and all the time has continued to remain his loving and happy self.

One theme that has continued throughout is our ongoing battle to give Caleb the best chance for a good night's sleep. Until now, this consisted of a full bed with bed rails, mom laying with Caleb until he falls asleep and constant monitoring through the times he was up at night. With progress in his physical abilities, came the discovery that he can climb over those rails. Like many parents with a child with special needs looking for answers, we went to Google. "Beds for Children with Special Needs" is what we searched, and the Safety Sleeper is exactly what we were looking for. Fund It Forward is allowing this to happen, and we've been as excited to meet the people that we have through this process as we have been to find the bed!

Jeff
Monroeville, PA

February 2015

 

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