Hello Friends -
This is a sad day for me. As many of you know, I had an opportunity to meet Senator Edward Kennedy two years ago while doing some advocacy work on behalf of people who are siblings of people with developmental disabilities. I got to talk with the Senator as a sister to a brother and it will always be one of the highlights of my life and career.
At left is a picture taken that day. I am holding a picture of Tom and me… and at the moment this picture was snapped I had a Portuguese water dog’s snout up my skirt! My friends in the picture all have brothers and sisters who have disabilities… except for Dr. Tom Fish… who is the father of the Ohio-based sibling movement….
During the meeting, Senator Kennedy looked up at me a couple of times to see that I had a big dopey smile on my face and tears in my eyes. He probably got a lot of that during his 47 years in the Senate. As we rose to depart I pulled out a story book about President Kennedy that my mom had read to me as a child. It had one of those famous Kennedy family portraits in it, and the senator autographed it for me. It is now one of my most prized possessions.
There is much work to be done… to reform health care, to make sure people with disabilities (and their families!) have the help they need, to extend justice and freedom to more Americans. Whatever your personal views, I hope you will all take a moment today to reconfirm your commitment to doing your bit and doing it well.
Best to all,
Cathy
This is a sad day for me. As many of you know, I had an opportunity to meet Senator Edward Kennedy two years ago while doing some advocacy work on behalf of people who are siblings of people with developmental disabilities. I got to talk with the Senator as a sister to a brother and it will always be one of the highlights of my life and career.
At left is a picture taken that day. I am holding a picture of Tom and me… and at the moment this picture was snapped I had a Portuguese water dog’s snout up my skirt! My friends in the picture all have brothers and sisters who have disabilities… except for Dr. Tom Fish… who is the father of the Ohio-based sibling movement….
During the meeting, Senator Kennedy looked up at me a couple of times to see that I had a big dopey smile on my face and tears in my eyes. He probably got a lot of that during his 47 years in the Senate. As we rose to depart I pulled out a story book about President Kennedy that my mom had read to me as a child. It had one of those famous Kennedy family portraits in it, and the senator autographed it for me. It is now one of my most prized possessions.
There is much work to be done… to reform health care, to make sure people with disabilities (and their families!) have the help they need, to extend justice and freedom to more Americans. Whatever your personal views, I hope you will all take a moment today to reconfirm your commitment to doing your bit and doing it well.
Best to all,
Cathy
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