The Encouragement to Keep Going

By |Published On: June 8, 2021|Categories: News & Stories, Stories|

“Encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.”

1 Thessalonians 5:11

When Hugh and Pat found out that their baby had Down syndrome, they were overwhelmed. Yet as Bethany (now 11) got older, they knew they did not want her to grow up as an only child, so they adopted Lily (now 9), who also has Down syndrome.

Pat describes what it was like in the beginning. “My background is in physical therapy, and I thought I knew what it was like to work with people with disabilities. When Bethany was born everything I thought I knew got thrown out the window. The world got turned upside down.”

“Being the parents to two children with disabilities can be exhausting. It’s really hard sometimes. Our girls have yet to sleep through the night in 11 years. They don’t outgrow that need for 24-hour vigilance.”

–Pat

Pat’s transparency reveals the very real need for respite, which is why the partnership between our Respite at Home Internship program, the University of Northwestern St. Paul and Joni and Friends Minnesota is so life-giving! Through Respite at Home, Christian nursing students at the University of Northwestern St. Paul are providing families affected by disability with the respite care they so desperately need, and they’re using their internship experience to preach the Gospel in both word and deed.

Interns visit special needs families like Pat’s for three hours a week over the course of their college semester – building friendships with each member of the family through activities like singing, dancing, Bible stories, and crafts. And while the interns share the love of God with Bethany and Lily, Pat gets some much-needed rest! “It gives me a chance to breathe, and I know that Bethany and Lily are well taken care of,” shares Pat with confidence.

“Life doesn’t get easier. With Down syndrome, you have to teach your child each step of everything they do. It can be frustrating; it stretches your patience. Respite at Home has been very helpful for me. I can trust that my girls can be with the interns and I can do the things I need to without interruptions. And it has been a growth opportunity for the girls.”

–Pat

And Respite at Home isn’t the only way this family experiences the hope of Jesus through Joni and Friends. Pat shared that after attending our Minnesota Family Retreat, “Family Retreat gave me a glimpse of Christ in a more profound way than I ever imagined!”

That’s what we’re all about at Joni and Friends… bringing families closer to each other and closer to Jesus!

Support the Ministry!

Please pray for families living with disability – families like Pat’s – and know that every gift given to Joni and Friends supports every program we have to offer. Today, your generosity can be the gift that gives special needs families the encouragement they need to keep going!

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