Kelly's mom Sue goes way back with LifeSPAN; she actually first heard about this idea in the early 1990's when Vickie Cammack and Al Etmanski, co-founders of PLAN in Canada, presented in Seattle and talked about their organization's values concerning relationships and contribution, and personal networks of support. She longed for a similar organization here! - so when a PLAN model was started in this area in 2000 Sue knew it was time to get in gear, and joined LifeSPAN as a founding Board member. Although the concept of safety and security for Kelly after her death was important, Sue's most immediate desire was just to enrich Kelly's life and keep isolation at bay. By this time, Kelly had graduated high school, moved into an adult family home, and begun employment at a sheltered workshop. His adult life looked good, but Sue wanted him to have as full a life as possible.

Kelly's network was LifeSPAN's second, and Sue had been thinking for years about people to include. She was pleased and touched by those invited to attend the first meeting who did show up, and who came on board as network members. (This can be a surprising and affirming thing for families!) Kelly has an active family group including mom and stepdad Dan, dad and stepmom Katherine, brothers Shawn and Tracy and Tracy's wife Robin. In addition the network includes a former high school teacher, a high school classmate, a SkiForAll coach, and the husband of a good friend of Sue's just because she thought he and Kelly would click.

Kelly's first facilitator, Stacey, launched the network and led it for three years and we have now had a smooth transition to a new facilitator, Tiffany -- one of two new network members in the last few years. Network activities have centered around things that Kelly enjoys, like Mariners games or hanging out together to grill some burgers. The group has also enjoyed meeting at places special to its members, like the Museum of Flight where sister-in-law Robin works, or the Woodland Park Zoo, where Tiffany works on enrichment activities with the gorillas. Our goal is not just to network around Kelly, but to get to know each other and strengthen the web of the network.

-- Sue Willey, Kelly's mom, June, 2007

Kelly's facilitator Tiffany and her husband Mark just returned from Peru with their new adopted son Percy. Tiffany met Percy during a volunteer experience at an orphanage in Peru 3 years ago. Two years ago she and her husband held a fundraiser here in Seattle and returned to help the children; buying food, clothing, medical supplies as well as throwing a nice party with a huge feast of rice, beans and meat which they rarely enjoy. Tiffany and Mark both felt a strong bond to Percy and decided at that time that they wanted to adopt him and give him the opportunity of a lifetime here in the US.

The adoption took 13 months and untold hours of work. They were finally able to travel back to Peru in May to complete the adoption for their new son who is now 14 years old. The process took about a month in Peru with the majority of the time in the historic city of Cusco about 90 minutes from the ruins of Machu Picchu. The balance of that time spent in Lima completing the US immigration papers so they could bring their new son home to the US.

The Brown's have been home with their new son for 2 and a half weeks now. The experience has been very rewarding and they are very excited to finally have him home. Husband and new Father, Mark put it best, "It's an incredible thing to see this young boy experience things for the first time that we all take for granted. I've never seen anyone so excited to ride an escalator. The best part is that he can tell you about these new experiences as they happen."

Message from LifeSPAN: Thank you for sharing your time and caring nature by facilitating Kelly's Network! We look forward to meeting your new son.

We invite you to attend a free one-hour session to talk about LifeSPAN and our approach to building relationships in the community. You will have an opportunity to speak with members of LifeSPAN who are excited about ensuring a good life for people with disabilities. You will also be able to get more information about membership in LifeSPAN, training workshops, and involvement in Networks and Facilitation.

Our next session is scheduled for Sunday July 8 from 4-5 pm at Jackson Place Cohousing 800 Hiawatha Place S. Seattle, WA 98144, one block east of Rainier Ave, at Dearborn.

To help us with planning, please RSVP to Kathy (206) 522-3099 or email (kathy@lifespan-wa.org) if you're planning to come.