We at the Shining Beautiful Series are rethinking our entire way of providing support for Mikelle to define a new and vibrant rhythm to life in a world that changes daily. Over the years, we have engineered, refined, and established a remarkable way of supporting Mikelle, effectively maximizing her self-determination and control over her life. […]
Rethinking, Reimagining, and Resolved to be Resilient. Read More »
Typically, each year we celebrate Mikelle’s birthday at Cheeseman Park. We have been doing this for so long I actually can’t think of the last time we didn’t celebrate there. We celebrated her 29th birthday when the temperature roared by 105 degrees. We celebrated in down coats and gloves with rain drizzles in 59 degrees
Birthdays, Community and COVID Read More »
Change – the pace of change is real! None of us could have planned for COVID, protests, economic challenges, job loss, and alteration in services for our families. I know Mikelle, and I never thought we would be social distancing. Our focus has always been being active in our community. Mikelle and I have developed
Change and ResponsAbilty Read More »
Fifteen years ago, a thoughtful high school teacher introduced Mikelle Learned and Jerome Stewart, she had a hunch these two might become the best of friends. She was right. Jerome played football, ran track and was a well-liked senior at East High School. He, like Mikelle, was a recent transfer student from another high school.
Soul Mates. A Story of Love and Friendship Read More »
Bless our hearts. The heart, our capable and vigorous organ pumps our life force throughout our body. It pumps while we wake, slumber, worry, laugh, hug, quarrel, growl at traffic, touch a lover’s hand, sip hot coffee, savor a mint julep, or a tangy sassy margarita. As Christmas approaches, our hearts are focused on family,
Whoa! Does the world appear to be a little off-balance these days or what? Let’s be real. Most of what we knew growing up no longer exists. Wishing we could go back to what appeared to be stable and predictable isn’t going to help you cope with a quickly changing world. We see daily life
Feeling Out of Balance? Read More »
Recently, Mikelle and I had the honor of interviewing Jim Warne, film producer of the documentary, 7th Generation. I met Jim at the Washington Initiative on Supported Employment annual Community Summit last June. She attended is a powerful session on disability, the importance of community and tradition and learned more about the terrible trail of
Jim Warne, Ogalala Lakota film producer meets Mikelle! Read More »
The Christmas tree is back in the box. Time to put out the welcome mat for 2019. Most of us are tired from all the holiday shuffle and are tempted to fall into the warm arms of a comfy chair, cover ourselves with a cozy quilt, and sip tea as we look out at the
Get TechFit and TechStrong. If you don’t use it, you lose it. Areas in life, once strong become weak. It was a gradual weakening, one we didn’t notice until it was obvious. Mikelle’s voice was growing quieter. The digital voice we had become so accustomed to was increasing silent as she began to rely on
Can You Speak Mikelle? Read More »
“Mama always said life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.”- Forrest Gump Valentine’s Day and chocolates go hand and hand, like peas and carrots. Do you remember Valentine’s Day was a big deal when you were a child? Boxes of chocolate were affectionately given from grandparents,
Love is Like a Box of Chocolates, Right? Read More »
