Our website offers a place
for families with special needs to meet
online, including an interactive chat room, bulletin board and eGroup forum
where parents, caregivers and children can share stories, concerns, and support.
We invite you to subscribe
to our free periodic newsletter, for which we solicit articles from parents and
professionals on a variety of topics.
Our website was conceived after our daughter Monica was born on December 22. Monica was born with multiple birth defects including skull and hand defects, an occipital encephalocele, constriction of the right arm and index finger, missing fingers on the right hand, and multiple handicaps including blindness, mental retardation and cerebral palsy. Two days after birth, on Christmas Eve, Monica survived life-threatening brain surgery - our own Christmas miracle!
At two years of age, Monica had arm and hand surgery, and at the age of 13, she had spinal surgery to correct scoliosis. We invite you to read Monica's continuing story of her struggles and strong determination to learn and enjoy life.
Initially, we developed this website to simply provide information and encouragement to other parents with a special needs child. As Monica has gotten older, we have encountered new challenges, adapted to her changing needs, and continued to acquire more experience and knowledge. And so, this site has evolved and expanded in scope. In order to more effectively share this increasing volume of resources and information, we developed Special Needs Family, a web site devoted exclusively to resources for families with disabilities and special needs.