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"Deven Riffle is a 17-year-old bright, entrepreneurial young man who created Blue Mountain Able Heroes to provide a fun inclusive space for people with and without physical disabilities to play sports, make friends and give back to the community."
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"Cody was Born September 13, 2005. at Walla Walla General Hospital. He was born with down syndrome and had holes in his heart which required him to have open heart surgery sixteen days after he was born. Cody's first few days in this world were hard. The doctors told us Cody would ever learn to walk or communicate."
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"Kevin was born on May 12, 2015, at TRIOS Women's and Children's Hospital in Kennewick, Washington. The doctors who received him were Dr. William and Dr. Maria Guevara. Kevin weighed 8 lbs. and 2 oz. He measured 21 inches. Kevin was in the hospital for 24 hours."
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"Ashley G. Mendoza is 17 years old, she is an only child, for me I am her mother, she will always be my girl. She has Muscular Dystrophy and uses a wheelchair, she is a very strong girl with her disability."
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I am Natalie Wade, a 22-year-old disabled mother to my two beautiful daughters studying Human and Social Services at Walla Walla Community College. After learning about the Walla Walla Valley Disability Network, I was so relieved to know that there were resources and support for disabled individuals and their families in this area.
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People say not to have expectations going into things, that way you will never be disappointed. I am not sure what I expected before starting to work with the disability network, but I did not think I would grow as much as I have.
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We loved Alex. A son, a brother, an uncle, a cousin, a nephew, a friend - his presence was large and will not be forgotten.
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Hello WWVDN Families/Supporters. My name is Krystal Ceron. I was born and raised in Portland until 7 years ago when I moved to Walla Walla. I am a mother of six children and a small farm.
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Dependable, hard-working, ambitious, and persistent – these are the first four descriptors that come to mind when I think of my team member, Brian Hough. Brian has been working part-time alongside me at our ranch since early this year.
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We all need heroes, those unique individuals that take on incredible challenges we can only aspire to, but in aspiring to, we get inspired maybe just enough to take on some of our own challenges. And even though each of us is unique, when that hero is someone who looks like us, they seem to share similar burdens. Thus they inspire us to become the best version of ourselves to meet the challenges we face.
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As a 14 year old now, Isaac has grown! I am here to share our story with exciting moments and challenges. Isaac was diagnosed with autism at the age of five. With the diagnosis, now looking back, I know there was a special plan for our family.
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Have you ever felt like you don't quite fit in? Maybe you feel like no one really understands what it's like to parent a child with a disability. Let's be honest, we love our kids and would do anything for them. We see their worth and appreciate their unique abilities and strengths. But parenting our kids with special needs is very VERY hard sometimes.... most of the time.
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I met Megan Gaines a few years ago and she was a shy quiet young lady. Over the years, I have watched her transform into a strong leader for Special Olympics and at her church. Megan began her journey as an athlete of Special Olympics with Track and Field being her favorite sport that she competes in.
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My name is Tahasha, but people call me Tash. I have worked with children from birth through sixth grade for the last 11 years, now I get the opportunity to work with teens and adults through the Walla Walla Valley Disability Network's SOAR program! I have an aunt and a sister who are both developmentally disabled, I have grown up learning to love, show compassion, and help those who need it most.
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I’m Whitney Lux, a third-grade teacher at Gib Olinger Elementary in Milton-Freewater. As a first-year teacher one of my big goals this year was to bring awareness about inclusion and acceptance of others. To achieve this, I have read multiple books to my class that cover a variety of special needs. I want to share some of the books that I read with my class, what the premise of each book was about, and the impact that it had on my students.
