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Monthly Archives: May 2011
They Know They Can
In April, the Bennett Blazers, Kennedy Krieger’s wheelchair basketball team, and I travelled all the way to Denver, Colorado for four days to compete in the 2011 National Wheelchair Basketball Association’s (NWBA) National Championships. We felt prepared—we’d been a strong team all year with a solid defense that anticipated each other’s moves. We were also the only team that had brought just six players to the tournament, which left us with only one substitute—a fact other teams seemed to be more concerned about than my players. They were ready to play the whole game no matter what, and they did.
I had complete faith in the team and their abilities, but I couldn’t have predicted their dedication, composure and confidence throughout some of the hardest minutes of basketball they had ever played. It was a nail-biter all the way to the end. Here’s a play-by-play:
Triple the love
Anyone who decides to open their homes and their hearts to foster a child with special needs obviously has a lot of love to give and a clear desire to use it to help children.
As a social worker with Kennedy Krieger’s Therapeutic Foster Care program, I’m fortunate to meet so many kind and loving individuals who simply want to provide loving, stable homes for children in need—some with multiple medical or behavioral issues. Sometimes, one of those families decides they want to commit to a lifetime of caring and become a forever family to a child who desperately needs just that.
Posted in Developmental Disabilities, Foster Care
Tagged developmental delay, developmental disabilities, foster care, foster parent, Kennedy Krieger Institute, social work, treatment foster care
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Can I Play With That Nerf Gun?
It was almost three years ago when I met Noah Hanssen for the first time; his mother wheeled him into our therapy gym and I introduced myself as his new physical therapist. I wanted him to feel comfortable and safe – after all, new people and places can be intimidating for an 8-year-old, especially one in need of intensive therapy. And I’ve learned over the years when working with kids, sometimes we need a bit of a “warm-up” period before they show me their true personality.
But not Noah. Instantly I could tell that he is bright, adventurous, and active. His smile won me over in seconds, as he asked his most important question during our evaluation: “Can I play with that Nerf gun over there?”
Noah and I became a team over the next few months. Always fearless and unquestioning, he was motivated to try anything I asked of him, just so long as it was fun. He challenged me to get creative and cleverly disguise his therapy as rambunctious activities that any boy his age would love. Continue reading