Our little girl, our loving parish

Posted by Nora
Part 2 of 2  Click here for part 1

I talked with the Religious Education department here at St. Raphael about starting a class to serve special needs children, including my daughter with autism.  Last summer, my beautiful friend Molly offered to teach the class that would include my daughter and two of her friends. Molly put an ad in the bulletin about needing help with the class and the response she got was amazing. It was like the scene in the Grinch Who Stole Christmas when all the Whos in Whoville come out of their houses and hold hands. It was incredible.

 

The class was an enormous success. The kids did amazingly well, and learned so much. The teachers and other volunteers enjoyed spending time each week with our children and seeing them grow and learn. Father Meyers has been incredibly supportive of the program and the ministry and Mary Beaudoin has been so wonderful as well. The gift that they have given our children and our families is immeasurable. Something is happening that we thought might never be possible for our kids.  Here is an example of an illustrated version of the Hail Mary that the children use in class -

 

The special needs religious education class has been such a success that the parish is adding a second class. I am going to teach it and I am nervous! But I am so happy and so eager to give back to a program that has given so much to our family.

 

The vision that I have always had for the special needs ministry at our parish has been two-fold. The first part is that I wanted to have a religious education program so that children like my little girl could learn the faith and find comfort in it, as well as be an active member in the Church as a body. Secondly, it is one of my greatest dreams that other people within our community come to understand autism a little better, and perhaps be more understanding and compassionate.

 

One place where a little compassion will go a long way is at Sunday Mass.  Sometime people who have family members with autism often won’t go to Mass. They don’t want their child's communication difficulties or repetitive behaviors to be disruptive, so the family stays home.  And that’s not good.

 

As the parent of a child with autism, I know how they feel. I don’t want to disrupt this special hour for anyone. But on the other hand, Mass is good for me. It’s good for my family and I get great comfort there.  I want my daughter to go to Mass, to love it, and feel that she is part of it. So we go.  When we go, we stay as long as she can handle it and then we leave. Some is better than none.

 

So, I ask that next time you see a family with someone struggling, keep in mind that we all come to Mass for the same reason: to be closer to God and be a part of our Church family. You might see an autistic child flapping their hands or maybe even doing some lines from Phineas and Ferb over and over again, but that’s their way of keeping themselves calm and happy in a difficult situation.

 

Our family is so blessed to be a part of the St. Raphael Parish community and I thank all of you for what you’ve done to support our family as well as others. Please consider joining us on Sunday, September 29^th at 11:30 a.m. for our parish’s second annual special needs Mass. After Mass, there will be fellowship and information on special needs resources in the Trumpet Room.

 

And also, please say a special prayer for me as I start teaching this new class. I’m going to need it!