Kellen's famous! :)

A local news station did a feature story on Kellen! They talked about Childhood Apraxia of Speech and about getting the proclamation! It was pretty cool to be interviewed (although incredibly nerve wracking too!). His article was then also shared by the CASANA site! What an honor it was to be representing CAS and our amazing kid. A link to the article/newscast is below :)
 four-year-old-raises-awareness-of-rare-speech-disorder

A proud moment...

            When Kellen was first diagnosed with apraxia, I sought out resources. I remember feeling this strong need to connect with others who were climbing the same mountain that we were. I did multiple google searches which brought me to the CASANA site (Childhood Apraxia of Speech Association of North America). That in turn led me searching for groups on Facebook. I found a wonderful group through Facebook that I quickly joined. It became a huge resource for me to hear stories, watch videos, read questions/concerns/challenges/successes of kids like Kellen.

           Through the Facebook group, I also first heard about Apraxia Awareness Day. This day is set aside as May 14^th each year. However, it is not readily nationally recognized. Through the group, it came to light that in order for Apraxia Awareness Day to be fully recognized in a state, someone needed to submit a request for a proclamation to the Governor. I did a quick search and found that Michigan hadn’t had it declared as an awareness day. So, I talked with Dave and we decided to submit a request for a proclamation. I wrote Governor Snyder (with guidance from the Apraxia group!), and at the end of March we received word that our request had been approved! We got a PDF copy of the proclamation via e-mail and were encouraged to take a trip to the Capitol to pick up the actual hard copy and tour the Capitol building.

The PDF copy of the Proclamation

         Because we were not going anywhere on Spring Break, Dave and I decided that our week off was the perfect time to travel to Lansing and pick up the proclamation! I, of course, have toured the Capitol many times but Dave had not and of course Kellen had never been there either. It was an incredible experience. Governor Snyder wasn’t there but we were given a tour of his office (something I had never done!) as well as the whole building. It was pretty moving to know what we were a part of. We have realized how important awareness is for our sweet boy and others like him. We are working every day to help him realize just how amazing he is and just how much he can achieve. Below are some pictures of our day at the Capitol. We have since framed the proclamation and it is up in his room… a reminder of just how strong his voice can be.

Hanging out in the Governor's office

First look at the actual proclamation!