Redding resident Jill Edelman knows first-hand what’s it’s like to parent a child with special needs. She also deeply understands the importance of a nonprofit organization like SPHERE.
In celebration of SPHERE’s thirtieth year, Edelman, a SPHERE board member, traced the history of SPHERE, sharing a powerful story of hope, hard work, and promise in her Parenting Adult Special Needs blog.
“I researched and wrote this history in response to the calls and emails I have gotten over the years from families desperate to find programming for their adult children languishing at home. With state budget cuts in social programming, private individuals and communities are left to fill the gap,” says Edelman.
She continues, “SPHERE and the Ridgefield, Connecticut community have done just that. It is my hope that their story can be both inspiring and provide a template for others across the country to do the same for their adults with disabilities.”
Edelman tells the story of SPHERE’s humble beginnings, when two families of special needs children wanted more for them than society dictated. Thirty years later, those two families remain deeply committed and involved in the organization. “As a result of their foresight, intelligence and community outreach, SPHERE was formed and now serves the needs of over sixty adults with disabilities in the area,” says Edelman.
Please take the time to read Edelman’s story on her blog HERE.
And, please consider attending SPHERE’s Gala on November 4. The Gala will honor Ridgefield First Selectman Rudy Marconi, recipient of the SPHERE Commitment to Service Award.
*Photo credit: Jill Edelman