Stories like Toby’s are why we do the work we do. Toby is in Grade 3 and has completed the No Limits program supported by MPF.
As a baby and toddler Toby had significant speech delays and behavioural issues. His mum Kerry had him assessed and learned Toby has autism, oppositional defiant disorder, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
Kerry’s attempts at getting early intervention weren’t successful, she says, “Every time we went to a speech therapist Toby would work out they were assessing him and become completely non-verbal.”
Kerry credits the No Limits program offered at Toby’s school as a turning point for her son. “Toby was one of the first to go through the program four years ago. Because it was done in the classroom he didn’t identify as being different and completed the whole program. Before Toby started school you could understand very little of what he said. By the end of Prep he was pretty much at the same stage as every other child.”
At the end of term 4, to the delight of Toby’s family, school community and MPF, Toby was awarded an academic excellence award. Kerry says, “I cried when I got the phone call about the award. I have two older children who are academic and have received awards. I didn’t think this would ever be possible for Toby, he would have other wins I thought but not this. This was possible in big part from the fact that in prep he received the intervention he needed to be able to speak and communicate. He used to get so frustrated that nobody understood what he was saying that would trigger him and he’d get angry. A lot of that has disappeared as well.”
In closing, Kerry says, “It’s absolutely amazing what the MPF donors do but I feel like we get to see the reward and they don’t. They provide the money for these programs to happen, and I want them to hear the huge impact it makes on kids’ lives. It is a roll-on effect, it’s helped Toby, it’s helped his teachers, he gets along better with his older brother and sister because they can understand him, and he has a great group of friends. I can share my child’s story but it’s just one of the many stories.”