Exceptional Parent

Parenting Your Child With A Disability

JUNE 1994

Kate was born on November 1, 1989, All Saints Day. It was a very tumultuous day, the very worst day of my life. Within one hour of birth she turned blue and doctors put her on life support. She had what was called in layman’s terms “a common AV valve” which translates into a hole in the valve between the lower chamber of her heart. She was transported within hours of birth to Children’s Hospital and put in critical care unit. She is depicted here at three months old while we wait for open heart surgery. At five months old she had the surgery by Doctor Norwood who invented the “Norword Procedure”. About 40% of children with Down syndrome have this condition.

The Promise

Katie was a planned pregnancy. Both my husband and I believed that God wanted us to have a third child. It was very hard to understand initially when Kate was born with Down syndrome. Why would a good God have allowed her to have a disability? This is a question many people ask, and for some, is a reason not to believe in a good God. After the grief and the tears, we came to peace with God and recognized Kate as a true blessing from heaven. Hence this drawing’s title called “The Promise”. (Note: as I am publishing this now in 2026, our good God has shown us how much He was there at conception in 1988 and has used our story to reach others in similar circumstances to realize that a child like Kate has other special gifts to offer.)

Dad and Kate

Dad loves to toss Kate around and rough-house with her. She loves it too. 1994 (Additional thoughts in 2026: Though Katie was very fragile at birth with a heart defect, she recovered and is a very strong adult. She was part of Special Olympics for 10 years and won numerous gold medals. She was a dishwasher at Friendly’s Restaurant for eight years. She dances every day using her Wii and works out at Planet Fitness. She moves heavy furniture when we redecorate the house. She is always saying, “I want to do it myself!” She calls herself a “housewife” and frequently does all my laundry, washing, drying, folding.)