Next Speaker In Our House
Next month, our oldest son Tayair will be celebrating his 24th birthday which is a miracle.
You see, Tayair was born on June 23, 1992, 3 months prematurely weighing only 2.8 lbs, with a condition called Trachea Esophageal Fistula. He had more surgeries than I care to remember and had a feeding tube inserted into his stomach until the age of 5, which meant he didn’t eat his first real meal until around the age of 6.
He was not able to be around others without health complications so a home nurse was his first friend and formal teacher. When he was able to attend pre-school the nurse would follow behind the bus then sit in the office until it was time to administer his nebulizer treatments and pour a can of Pedisure through his feeding tube which was his lunch.
Tayair struggled through school but was mainstreamed into regular classes so that he was able to learn despite being labeled “intellectually disabled” This miracle son of ours is going to be the next speaker in our house.
A few weeks ago we attended a meeting with his DHSS counselor and she was very impressed in what he stated with regards to his career path as well as his ability to create Powerpoint presentations. He had been chosen to be a representative for the UDel CLSC Program last summer and had presented at a workshop in Virginia.
She asked him if he would be interested in presenting at one of their monthly staff meetings and naturally he said, “yes”.
Tayair’s father and I have been presenting in front of audiences for years and Tayair has been the photographer at many of my Social Media Workshops, therefore, public speaking is literally in his DNA.
However, this was the first time we both had an opportunity to hear him speak and our hearts were filled with pride and excitement!
The audience was quite large and he did an amazing job as you can see from the following video. Tayair spoke briefly of his experience in learning how to drive and being stopped by a cop for speeding and how the Trooper treated him.
His father and I were then asked how we felt about having an adult child with disabilities and letting go so the presentation became a family affair.
Tayair is definitely destined to be the next speaker in our house and I know he will carry on the legacy with greatness. Remember, “being disabled doesn’t mean you are not able!”
Excellent!
Thank you, stay tuned for “would you chip your kid” a post featuring two frantic moms – you and me!
Clapping for him and all of you. WTG young man 🙂
Thank you – I was one proud mama bird!
Beautiful share mama congrats for a job well done! Supportive parents are hard to come by xo
Thank you sweetie – you know how passionate we get with our “kids” so when they do amazing things it makes you feel like you did a great job – thank you for recognizing it as well.
Yeah, Yeah, Yeah!!!!! Congratulations to your son. He did great. Certainly a natural and the use of his visuals makes such an impact.
Thank you Haralee, we practiced that step a few times and he seemed to relish in the reaction that he received – just like his mom!
Amen to that! You raised an excellent young man who will go far in life 🙂
Alicia
spashionista.com
Thank you, we were so over the top with his presentation. God has truly blessed him!
so perfect moment! xxx
stylentonic.com
Thank you, yes it definitely was!
Wow!!! Great job!!! Great Job Toni & Blake! Look at God! I remember Toni
I know, can you believe time has flown by so quickly – God is Good!
This is wonderful Sis! God is good! Tayair is proof that you can be what ever you want in life, no matter if you have a disability. Congratulations to him on graduating!
Yes that is so true – when you pray hard enough and work towards your goal nothing is impossible!
[…] medical history he is classified as Intellectually Disabled, but you also know from his recent presentation at a staff meeting at the Delaware Health and Social Services his motto “Being Disabled Does Not […]