Sammy was born in 2001 and came home with us as our foster baby at five weeks old. He tested positive for cocaine at birth and could not go home with his biological family.  In 2004 we adopted him. Sammy is diagnosed with severe developmental delays, early onset bipolar disorder, displaying itself in night terrors and rages, and autism. 

Sammy is now 22 years old. Managing his behavior is difficult. It takes two trained adults to safely take him out into the community, something he enjoys doing. Our family became more and more isolated as the years went by. Sammy’s developmental delay has meant that his peers quickly outgrew him, leaving him with his preschool-aged toys for their maturing interests. Today, Sam is eager to make new friends. He loves bowling, swimming, bike riding, playing basketball and socializing.

 

As many parents of children with special needs, I came to the realization that Sammy will need 24/7 care his entire life. We’ve come to learn that there is insufficient assistance available for our special needs families. In truth, the needs of special individuals such as Sammy far outweigh the resources available at any government level. And so Sam’s Hope became a thought, then a dream, and now a reality. Sam’s Hope is hope for special needs individuals and their families; coordinating special needs fun events, safety focused instructional events, and 24/7 supervised living.