2023

Our family has had the pleasure of working with Wesway for over 15 years. We have an 18-year-old daughter with an anoxic brain injury which presents like cerebral palsy and dystonia, a movement disorder. She is non-verbal and can’t do anything independently. She has a feeding tube and is in a wheelchair.

The strain of taking care of our daughter 24/7 was really taking a toll on our family. We desperately needed help and a break. We were hesitant at first, when Wesway offered their services to help out. We (probably just me, the overprotective, wants everything done to perfection mother) were pessimistic about allowing someone else to take care of our daughter in our home. It has turned out that every worker that has come into our home has been fabulous.

Wesway screens and matches their staff to best support their clients. They have done an amazing job. Our Respite Workers have become part of our family. Juliet is kind, gentle, caring and an awesome friend to our daughter. We all absolutely love her. At times I felt overwhelmed, but she has provided me with that much needed break to help prevent caregiver burn-out. My heart is so happy watching them interact, play, sing, dance, or just hanging out like best friends. She gets my daughter and what makes her happy. My daughter always has a huge smile when Juliet appears.

Wesway operates a respite home that is fully staffed and available to parents of special needs children on weekends. We use this home regularly for a 24-hour period. We are able to finally go out and enjoy ourselves while our daughter is well taken care of and is safe and happy, enjoying social participation and fun outings with staff and other participants.

In 2010, I had a very unfortunate accident and broke my back. I could barely move, let alone take care of my disabled daughter. Wesway was there to help by offering crisis support. These extra hours of support allowed me to focus on healing and not worrying about how I could possibly care for my child.

Respite care has reduced stress for me and our family. When my son was younger, I was able to spend some quality time with him as he was feeling neglected. This reduced his feelings of frustration and resentment. Respite services have also relieved some of my exhaustion. I could just sit at home and relax and do absolutely nothing.

A huge thank you goes out to Wesway for all of the services that you have provided for our family. We don’t know how we could have survived all of our struggles without your help.