| Our Pretty Rose
Some days come and go without us so much as recalling the date,
while others change our lives forever. Those are the dates we remember.
For us the date of April 27th, 2006 will remain forever etched in our
memory. That was the day at the University of Wisconsin – Madison, the
doctor told us that Mary Rose, our precious 4 month old baby girl, was
blind. We felt as if our hearts were breaking as the tears rolled down our
cheeks onto her beautiful blue eyes. The diagnosis was Leber's Congenital
Amaurosis, which the doctor told us was a rare genetic disease. He was able
to tell us nothing more. We were sent home feeling helpless and alone…
It is just short of a year since that day. It is hard not to feel
as if Mary Rose is looking back when her mom is singing “You are my
Sunshine” to her. However, time heals and we now realize the many blessings
that have been brought into our lives because of our little angel. As we
watch her start to learn, despite not being able to see, we are amazed at
how smart she is. More importantly we have been blessed to have the support
of other parents who have visually impaired children. This has made a huge
difference in both Mary Rose’s life as well as the rest of our family’s.
In August of 2006, we moved to Arkansas. After looking around we
realized that there was not a similar support organization for parents in
place in the state. We knew that the best way we could continue to help our
daughter was to find other parents who have either gone or are going through
the journey of raising a visually impaired child. As a result we decided to
start an organization to help parents of visually impaired children. We
also realized that by doing so, not only would we be able to help Mary Rose,
but other children like her. On January 11th, 2007, we founded a state
chapter of NAPVI – the National Association for Parents of children with
Visual Impairments. This is another date we will never forget as it is the
day we decided to step out of the dark and make a difference in not only our
pretty Rose’s life, but hopefully many others. The theme of our
organization is “Ensuring that all visually impaired children Bloom to their
full potential”. We would like to invite you to join us in making that
possible. And hopefully together we will be able to create many wonderful
memories for our visually impaired children and dates that we will remember
forever.
God Bless!
Dave & Patty Bushland
Co-Founders of Arkansas NAPVI
My Inspiration
My daughter Parker, was 5 months old when we found out that she was blind.
Her diagnosis is Optic Nerve Hyperplasia (ONH). I remember when the doctor
told me she was blind, and that there was no cause and no cure, how stunned
and numb I became. I walked out of the doctor’s office with no support, no
answers, and no idea where to go from that point.
I believe I went into survival mode and was in a haze. A friend of my
mother’s gave us some information on a school that helped children with
disabilities. I started making phone calls for help and was grateful to find
therapist for Parker. However, I didn’t know any other parents that had a
blind child. I didn’t even know anyone that was blind. There was no one that
could truly relate to what I was going through.
After Parker’s little sister Reagan was born, I started looking at my life
and realized I needed to make changes. I went back to school and finished my
undergrad and got my degree in Elementary Education. My marriage to their
father fell apart. I decided that the best place for Parker to be educated
would be at the Arkansas School for the Blind. This meant that we needed to
move to Little Rock. I started my job hunt and interviewed with ASB. Not
only did I get a job at ASB, but I found the support that I needed and the
peace of mind that Parker was going to be ok. I went on to get my Master’s
of Special Education with an emphasis in teaching the visually impaired at
UALR.
I taught fifth grade at ASB for 5 years. I loved it. However ASB started a
toddler program and I was very interested in not only working with blind and
visually impaired babies, but also with their parents. As an Early
Intervention Coordinator, I travel all over Arkansas. I found that my being
a parent of a visually impaired child meant so much to these parents. They
were in need of support, networking, and making connections with other
parents that were experiencing similar situations as them.
Mary Rose Bushland was one of the babies on my caseload. I met with her mom
Patty and father Dave. Within 10 minutes of us all talking together, we
literally decided to co-found the Arkansas Chapter of NAPVI. There was such
a need for support of families like ours. We believe supporting the parents
by having meetings, camps, fundraisers, newsletter, and other activities; we
are better serving children across the state to ensure that they bloom to
their full potential!
Note: I’m blessed to have Parker (who is now eleven) in my life. I thank God
that He trusted me to raise her. She has been an inspiration to me and many
others. Parker doesn’t mind being blind. She is a very happy child. She was
in The Repertory Theatre’s production of The Miracle Worker, she’s been in a
commercial, and is an avid Braille reader. When asked if she ever wished to
have vision, her answer was this, “Yes, for at least five minutes. I want to
see my momma’s face, a sunset at the ocean, and see my own face”. She
deserves my best efforts.
God Bless,
Shelli Moore
Co-founder of AR-NAPVI
Arkansas School for the Blind
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