I am supporting Northwest Association for Blind Athletes (NWABA)

My second of four children, Owen was born with multiple congenital eye defects. When he was 6 weeks old, after a visit to an ophthalmologist, retina specialist, and an eye ultrasound for what we thought was a lazy eye we learned that he had a significant vision impairment and would likely be completely blind. As you can probably imagine we were shocked, scared and completely lost as to how to help our little guy navigate the world in the most basic of ways. At 6 months old, he lost all vision including light perception in his left eye and had minimal vision in his right. We couldn’t imagine how we would stop a 1 year old from walking into a wall, navigate school physically and socially, be able be able to participate in any activities, sports etc.

The world isn’t made for people with differences and it is not easy to navigate finding resources as a parent of a child with differences. After months of effort, research and phone calls we were incredibly lucky to be matched with a vision teacher. As Owen grew she connected us with the Northwest Association for Blind Athletes (NWABA).

Owen has participated in NWABA’s summer and winter camps as well as the many extra activities they offer since he was 4 years old. As soon as he was mobile with a white cane and could move in his world confidently he was ready for adapted sports. He has been able to play Goalball (an adapted sport specifically for blind athletes), track and field, judo, swimming, skiing, snowshoeing, as well as offered a comfortable, relatable and safe community. They have exposed him to ways he can participate in many sports safely and have had Paralympians come in to help blind and visually impaired kids understand how capable they are. Owen is now 14, and will be participating in his high school’s track and field program, swim team and is a great student who aspires to volunteer with NWABA as he ages out of their youth programs.

On September 14th, NWABA will be holding their first annual NWABA Give Day! Please help me to achieve my goal in supporting them,

NWABA’s programs and services are offered at no cost to the participants and their families. Due to state-wide funding reductions, they need our support more than ever! Every dollar can make a difference and YOUR GIFT WIL BE DOUBLED, thanks to a matching donor. With your generosity, we can help them provide even more programs and services to children, youth and adults in our community.

Thank you for supporting this organization that means so much to me.