The Story Board
T.J. and Trinity
Submitted by: Yolanda Gordon
When you are being told that your child has a disability, your world crumbles. You don’t know what to expect. You pray for the answer to be something that you can handle but you know that it might not be the answer that you want. At least you can put a name with what you have been experiencing for weeks and months. When T.J. was diagnosed with autism, I had already been in touch with my Family Partner Susie Phillips and was pretty much prepared for the answer. I just didn’t expect for the answer to come like a ton of bricks on a hot summer day in June of 2006. I tried to deal with it alone, but Susie was there and she made me feel a little more at ease about the process. I quickly went through the stages of grief and was ready to do business for my child, my children, to become their best advocate. Family Connection of South Carolina provides parents a unique opportunity to not only get out and talk with other parents, but to have our children around their peers without the stares. I thank Susie Phillips for the guidance that she gave me. Without Family Connection of South Carolina, I do not think that I would be half the advocate that I am for my son and my daughter that I am now. When it became time for my daughter Trinity to be diagnosed, I fell back on those kernels of knowledge that Susie gave me so many years ago to make the most educated decision for her.
