I’m Thankful For You: PaPa’s Story

(Editor’s Note: This article was provided by Mary Samaro and is part of Cooper’s, ‘I’m Thankful For You’ Campaign.)

This November I would like to nominate and honor my Father-in-law; Mike Reedy Sr.

Our son Greyson, aka “Goose,” was diagnosed with Autism in January. He will be three in a few weeks. It has been a whirlwind, roller coaster, tornado (and any other adjective you can think of) of emotions and decisions since his diagnosis. When he was diagnosed, I quit my job because I just could not figure out how to help my sweet boy and get him all of the services he needed while running a business. My husband and I have five children and our days are chaotic. With the new diagnosis and to-do list, I was just SO overwhelmed.

This is where PaPa comes in.

You see, Greyson connects with everyone a little differently, but there is no denying that he and his PaPa have the strongest and most unique bond. He has a way of calming and soothing our sweet Goose. He takes him on adventures and gives him experiences that we would not be able too.

PaPa recently retired and has been a constant support and beacon of light for not just Goose, but for our whole entire family. I have even been able to go back to work and Greyson is thriving. He receives roughly 16 hour of ABA, two hours of speech therapy and three hours of occupational therapy a week. He is nonverbal, but I like to say preverbal because we are getting some great Echoics from him. He is growing into himself every day and we are just SO THANKFUL for our support, especially from PaPa.

On a side note, thank you so much for taking time out of your life to vlog. Your videos have brought me out of some dark places and also helped me address some feelings that I wasn’t allowing to surface. Thank you for keeping it real and raw. -Mary

You can still nominate the doctors, therapists, teachers, friends and family that make a difference in your special needs world. Click HERE to learn how!