Our son, Jason, has Autism. Like a lot of people with disabilities, Jason needs help living his life to his highest potential.
When Jason turned 21 four years ago, he suffered the same challenge as many people with disabilities. His access to education and related support ceased. He was no longer a student, but would still need support to become an independent adult. Some of this support he will outgrow, but some of this support he may need for his whole life.
Susan and I had a vision of what a supportive residential program could look like for Jason and others with similar challenges. When we approached Keshet with our idea, we not only found a partner who would help us execute our vision, but we discovered that we would have a profound impact on other individuals with disabilities and their families.
Jason now lives with three housemates in a Keshet-run home that our family provided. All of his housemates have different challenges, but more importantly they all have such wonderfully diverse strengths. With each other’s help and the help of the Keshet team, every day he and his housemates live their lives to their fullest potential. While we approached Keshet to help us program a residential home for Jason, what we got in return was a caring community of support.
Raising a child in today’s world is very expensive, but raising a child with a disability can be economically overwhelming for many families. The COVID-19 pandemic has made this economic challenge even more acute as Keshet adapts all of its programming to keep its community members safe and engaged. Even in the best of times, government support provides only a fraction of what is needed to help. The rest comes from us and people like us.
Susan and I are not asking for your financial support – we are asking you to be our partners in supporting Keshet.