The Family Mentor Program provides moral and emotional support to help families navigate education, find resources.
Connie Calhoun could have used a listening ear when doctors told her about her son's diagnosis after he had his first seizure at 8 months old.
As he grew up, it would have been easier if she had a person to direct her to resources and offer advice based on their own real experiences.
For Calhoun, a mentor would have been the support she needed.
"I was a new parent," she said. "I didn't know anything."
Even without a mentor, Calhoun was able to learn as she went along, and eventually found her son the help and support he needed. Now, her son is 33, and she is volunteering as a parent mentor with the Family Mentor Program to make herself available to other parents caring for a child or adult with a disability.
The Arc of Ohio — Northeast Region partnered with the Stark County Board of Developmental Disabilities to create the Family Mentor Program as a way for families caring for children or adults with disabilities to connect with each another and build a network of support. The program kicked off in January and has six mentors and two families on board so far.
"This doesn't just help the families, it also helps the mentors. That's building a family-to-family network, which is really the ultimate goal," said Emily Martinez, who oversees the service and support administration division for Stark DD.
How it works
Martinez said the program was created after families expressed concern about how confusing the educational system is for students with developmental disabilities.
Setting up an Individualized Education Program (IEP) — a targeted plan for a child who needs special education — can be an intimidating task, she said. An IEP document can cover multiple areas and can use terms that may be confusing for some.
Through the Family Mentor Program, a parent mentor can sit down with the family and help them navigate their child's IEP to understand it better.
"A lot of families that we work with sometimes feel like they are on their own little island because they don't have connections to other families who are living that life," said Chelsea Dietle, the Arc of Ohio program and events coordinator. "This is a way to provide them that support."
Dietle said the program gives families a way to connect with other families one-on-one rather than in a group setting, which can be more beneficial for families on tight schedules.
The program is flexible and allows families to connect in whatever method is convenient for that particular family whether it is via phone, email, text or in person, she said.
When a new family joins the Family Mentor Program, they are connected with a mentor who has had similar experiences.
Each mentor also undergoes training through Stark DD to help keep them up-to-date on resources available for various disabilities and methods for providing emotional support to families as they work to find what's best for their child, Arc of Ohio Summer Camp Director Brittany Kuhn said.
"It's like a light at the end of the tunnel because our mentors have walked that path," Kuhn said. "The mentors can help bring a family to a better position."
Providing support
Calhoun, who is also president of the Arc of Ohio Board of Trustees, had been an informal advocate for families before the Family Mentor Program.
Her son, Jack, has autism and a seizure disorder. Calhoun said seizures can be frightening for families, and she can provide advice and resources such as therapies and doctor recommendations to help families learn how to properly handle their child when he or she has a seizure.
When Calhoun's son had his first seizure at 8 months, it was the first sign that had a disability. Calhoun learned to handle the seizures on her own and had to learn through trial-and-error the best ways to manage the behavioral issues that come with autism.
"You just kind of feel it as you go," she said. "It was a good learning experience, and now I can help someone else. A lot of families I've approached in the past just didn't have any idea of what to do, so we kind of direct them to different resources."
Shawna Graybill, of Perry Township, decided to become a parent mentor for a similar reason. Graybill's son, who is now 17, was diagnosed with multiple disabilities at a young age, including autism, sensory processing disorder and anxiety.
Finding the different therapies her son needed would have been easier if she had a mentor to help her, Graybill said. Through the years, she was able to find the resources she needed to change her son's life. Now, she wants to pass on that knowledge.
Graybill has a large binder and multiple folders full of resources and tips she can hand out to a parent in need of some guidance.
"It's my goal in life to be a part of other families and help other children enhance their quality of life," she said. "I needed help. I didn't have a mentor. If there are parents out there that have these diagnoses, I can say, 'I've been through this.'"
Reach Samantha at 330-775-1133 or samantha.ickes@indeonline.com
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