My Child Has Disabilities Now What?

On today’s episode we have the pleasure of talking with Maria Daane, the Executive Director of Parents Helping Parents (PHP), located in Silicon Valley.  Parents Helping Parents supports parents whose children - or adult children - have disabilities. Parents Helping Parents offers 600 training and support groups online each year as well as a robust website visited by 200,000 annually.  Maria has been at PHP for 7 years, and especially values that over 90% of those who work at PHP as well as the majority of the board of directors are themselves parents of individuals with special needs, which makes the work especially meaningful.  Maria has worked over 20 years as a Manager or Director in the nonprofit sector, and enjoys hiking and family time.

Timothy Reed Murphy, Surf Therapy Specialist shares how he built a professional life that combines his greatest passions– wander lusting and bringing humanity closer together through giving back and how your child with disabilities can participate in surf therapy. Timothy has been working with children with disabilities, veterans, and other at-risk communities. He is a well-known and popular member of the Adaptive Surf Community, and posts his experiences with over 26,000 followers on Instagram (@timothy_reed_murphy).  On this episode discover how your child with disabilities can do the impossible. 

Today we are talking with Allen Lillie, former San Andreas Regional Center, Service Coordinator, who walks us through the regional center services and programs available to families in California. If you have a child with a disability tune in and find out how to access these critical services. 

Episode 2 discusses living options. Amy Parham, mom of a 20 year old daughter, nonverbal recently placed her in a residential living home.  Sherrean discusses Taylor’s current living situation in housing built for people with developmental disabilities. Positives and challenges of determining what is the best placement for your child.

On this first episode Dave and Sherrean are interviewed by Brian Bernasconi at PodCats Studio in Los Gatos CA. On this episode you will get the background story about us and our daughter Taylor who has sever disabilities.