FOUNDER

It was days before Thanksgiving and my nephew and I encountered an unpleasant gentleman who insisted he had the power to control access to my own backyard via the golf course.

The situation immediately escalated to a bad situation, and my nephew was only able to express a hello to the gentleman but it never calmed the gentleman.

Certain special needs kids can’t always express or articulate what’s really happening at every given moment, and in this situation my nephew became overwhelmed.

It was a continual push which lead to my nephew and I being labeled as trespassers in our own backyard.

It was unsettling to be part of a situation like this and I wanted to ensure future children with special needs had a voice in any situation in life.

I decided to birth a foundation that would provide resources and services to benefit these children of special needs.  

Roughly, around 15 percent of all public school students are of special needs and the number is growing swiftly. This number represents the known, but what about the unknown?

The foster care system is being overcrowded by more and more children with special needs. Millions of students need some type of help or extra attention in the classroom, along with outlets and opportunities for when they are done with schooling.

Voices of Power is here to become that helping hand of assistance. Special needs individuals have specific requirements resulting from learning difficulties, physical disabilities, or emotional and behavioral difficulties.

Voices of Power will bridge the gap between services and resources to ease the burden of families who need the support.

Many students just cope with the issue, but we want to alleviate their difficulties and be the difference in the community.  

The pandemic has made it even more visible, that families with special needs children lacked services such as a computer devices or reliable internet connections to access therapy and educational support via Telehealth.

Voices of Power was formed to add resources and support to these families now and into the future.

These children are innovators, and the Voices of Power foundation will make sure their voices and talents are heard.

PRESIDENT

Sometimes the most uncertain situations in life can be our biggest blessing as humans.

During middle school, I had a locker partner with special needs. At first, I thought it was a punishment of some sort for something I did.

However, my homeroom teacher pulled me aside one day and explained the whole situation to me. My teacher expressed to me that this student thought highly of me and requested to be my locker partner.

At that very moment, my whole life changed. I knew I now had an obligation to look out for this student in any situation.

I had the opportunity to see first-hand the judgment, small challenges, and constant doubt that filled his life.

Those three years were filed with some of the best moments of my life, because I had been given the opportunity to place someone else’s needs before mine.

Figuring that out at such an early age is the reason that I am the way I am today.

This experience was the reason I volunteered many hours with Nike special Olympics while in High School, but the funny thing was my middle school locker partner was participating in many of those events.

He was a phenomenal swimmer. It was a beauty to watch him in his true element, enjoying every moment that he spent in the water.

This student was not just my locker partner in middle school, he was now my friend for life.

Voices of Power is here to be the helping hand for children with special needs. Whether it is small things like providing children and individuals with hygiene classes, or larger things like creating a resumé and applying for jobs.

I want to do my part by changing the way these children and individuals are viewed in society, because they are not different, they are unique.

Voices of Power is here to build lifelong relationships like the one I had with my middle school locker partner. He is now a store manager at Bi-Mart.

DIRECTOR

Working in the field of education for 25 years has given me the opportunity to serve students with special needs, which has been the most gratifying part of my career.

Meeting the needs of the most challenging population in a school system has been the most rewarding.

I had the pleasure of not only addressing their specific academic needs, but to find ways to meet their social needs as well.

Celebrating the accomplishments of students was a must at the conclusion of every school year. All students received special recognition for their accomplishments, and there was nothing, but smiles displayed on the faces of students and parents.

It was important that every year was a memorable one that students could add to their memory bank. As a principal, the focus was to create the right culture within the campus community in addressing the needs of students with disabilities.

Meeting the individual needs of all students was critical, no matter the disability. That should be the focus of school leaders that have succeeded me in leadership.

Educational systems are built to meet the educational needs of students with special needs.

Voices of Power will support educational needs, but also empower students to have a strong voice that lines up with the education that they receive.

There are several factors that can impact a student with special needs: learning, emotional, physical and behavioral issues.

VOP will support families to access the appropriate resources that will align with a student’s specific disability that has hindered them from having a strong voice.

Voices of Power is here to provide resources and services to meet specific needs of students with disabilities.

DIRECTOR

I have had many experiences with students with special needs. After seeing firsthand, these students are the ones that need voices when they can’t quite advocate for themselves.

One particular experience comes to mind. I had the honor and privilege of working with a student who was wheelchair bound. He was extremely smart, very optimistic, and at the same time wanted a since of independence.

What struck me with this student was that he wanted to do things for himself, but there were certain things he was just unable to do.

Whenever he had to use the restroom, I had to put this student in a lift, let him pull his clothes down and I would then lower him with the lift so he can use the restroom. He always wanted me to leave so he could use the restroom and do it for himself.

I would tell him to let me know when he is done so I can assist him. He refused to allow me to assist him. He wanted to do it himself. I admired his since of independence.

I would praise him and encourage each time he took care of himself with minimal assistance.

There were instances where he would not make it to the restroom on time for me to assist him and he would use it on himself. He felt really bad and embarrassed when this would happen.

He always had a change of clothes for accidents. One day he had an accident and his shoes were soiled.

I went to the gym to find a pair of shoes that would fit him and I would then assist with changing him. He would just smile at me and say thank you! I would encourage him and let him know that it’s ok!

That reassurance meant the world to him. How do I know this? Evidently, he went home and told his parents and when I saw them, they walked over to me crying.

They said ”Thank you so much”! At that point and time, I realized that I was this young man’s voice when his parents were not able to be his voice.

I know the feeling and I understand because I have a son with special needs and neither my wife nor myself can always be the voice for our son when he is away from us.

Voices of power will be the voice for those kids, especially when they are away from their parents.

Parents can depend on the Voices of Power to ensure that they have an advocate for their child when they are unable to be one at the time.

They can also make sure that they empower those with special needs academically, socially, and with life skills so they can continue to advocate for and empower themselves through the services provided by the organization.

OFFICER

For many years I’ve been on the sidelines, watching special needs children lack services. I never had an opportunity to change the trajectory of this problem.

Nearly 75% of adults with special needs are without employment. I believe this to be a major issue.

As a foundation, we want to provide and assist these special needs children with job opportunities.

Watching family members go through this process has been challenging, hurtful, and a powerless feeling.

Our hope is to increase the percentage of employment opportunities for special needs kids.

I would like to make an impact in the community by providing during and after school programs that enables me to work with children with special needs.

I feel that it is important to provide speech therapist to assist and improve with children’s two-way communication skills. By connecting with talented therapist who understand and know how to work with the specific motor skills, will allow for those children with special needs children to be successful.

We want to show love to every child, so that they feel comfortable and loved with laughter on their faces and smiles in their heart!

SECRETARY

Every since I was a little girl, my parents always taught me the concept of giving back and always being considerate of people’s circumstances and their uniqueness.

When I attended Sunset High School in 2011, I was afforded the opportunity to choose from any various electives. My heart led me to choose the special needs program.

I didn’t know what I was getting myself into, but while helping in the classroom I experienced life changing moments.

The first day was amazing and they welcomed me with open arms. As a matter of fact, I remember my first day with the students like it was yesterday.

I was welcomed with the wonderful smell of cookies and a welcome card with different students expressing their excitement.

Often, when we think of special needs we think of “particular educational requirements resulting from learning difficulties, physical disability, or emotional and behavioral difficulties.”

When thinking of special needs, we should understand the issues and difficulties and find clarity through the solution. 

My hope and prayer in working with Voices of Power is to ensure that special needs children have access to resources that contribute to their success in the educational setting.

The Voices of Power foundation is here to be the VOICE and the CHANGE for decades to come.

Board Attorney