Kids On The Move

Sonia, mother of three, is struggling to talk about the fact that her family is graduating from the Early Head Start program. She says it is the “end of a beautiful period of learning for me and my family.” Sonia says that she and husband Bertin now have the tools to guide their children more patiently, lovingly, and intelligently. “This program has united us as a family and opened paths of communication between us, “says Sonia.

Sonia cites the physical and intellectual development of her daughter Aixa as the primary purpose of entering the program. She was worried about Aixa’s ability to be self-sufficient and confident. She’s not worried about those things anymore. “I’m pretty sure we achieved that and a lot more,” says Sonia “We are sure that her mind is now prepared to learn much more than she now knows. She’s sure of herself, and fiercely self-sufficient. She’s socially active in any type of situation, and she has good manners.”

According to Sonia, none of this would have been possible without the guidance of their Family Educator Martha, whose words of encouragement and firm and friendly temperament empowered Sonia to apply the practices she was learning in everyday life. “There are not sufficient words to thank Martha for each word, and each counsel of each visit.” Aixa will miss watching out the window every week to be the first to greet Martha.

But Aixa was not the only one to benefit from Early Head Start services. Because Early Head Start involves all parents in the governance of the program, Sonia was able to participate in decision making and leadership opportunities.  She says that participating in Parent Committee and Policy Council increased her self-esteem and helped her realize that she was capable of accomplishing a lot more than just housework. She says that Kids on the Move “didn’t treat me just like another person in the program, but from the very first moment they make you an important part of the decision making process.”

Sonia would like to thank everyone that has had anything to do with their marvelous experience in Kids on the Move.

Patricia knows how to pitch a baseball.  And she can shoot a basketball, too. With children that play sports, these are just a few of the skills you pick up when you’re a single mom. But perhaps her proudest achievement is just being a good parent to her kids, three-year old Brandon, and one-year old Elizabeth.

When Patricia was looking for parenting information, she went online and found the help she needed on the Kids On The Move website. The Early Head Start program seemed perfect for her— a chance to really learn the basics.

“As a teen mom, I didn’t feel comfortable on my own,” says Patricia. “Kids On The Move took me in. And I knew it was a good choice because my son, Brandon, who’s three now, really bonded with the other children.”

With two kids in the program, the family received in-home services every week and was able to go the Kids On The Move center a couple times a month. They worked with a family educator who offered advice and helped Patricia set goals. In fact, with encouragement, she decided to go back to school and has the hope of finishing soon.

“It’s great to know that someone is there to help. And everyone at Kids On The Move was very willing,” Patricia recalls. “Because of the support from the program, I know my kids and I can have a better future.”

Glenn & Holli are the parents of Ciara and Taegan. The Werkau family has been part of the EHS program since January, 2010. Ciara was 13 months back then and Holli was only a few weeks into her pregnancy with Taegan. It was also around this time when the family started to experience some changes. Glenn had been struggling for a few months with finding a job. A great job opening was offered to him in the oil rigging business in Philadelphia. The family was grateful for this opportunity, but also recognized the sacrifices that it required. Although this job would require Glenn to move away from his family, both him and Holli recognized that taking the job was the best decision for the family at the time. Glenn’s hard work allowed Holli to become a stay-at-home mom. She was able to spend more time with Ciara and it also provided the financial means to prepare for the new baby.

Having Holli be a full time mom has encouraged Ciara to learn and develop to her fullest potential. Ciara is a brilliant 22-month old girl. She loves books and has an incredibly extensive vocabulary. Lately, one of her favorite books is “Brown Bear, Brown Bear.” She can and point to and repeat the name of ALL OF THE ANIMALS in the book! One of Ciara’s goals while being in the EHS program has been to strengthen fine motor skills. Holli has motivated her to achieve and exceed all of her goals. When she was enrolled in the program, Ciara could stack about four blocks. She is now able to stack up to 12 blocks!

The Werkaus recently welcomed the newest member of their family. Taegan was born on August 18^th.  Her arrival was awaited with excitement, but also with concern. During Holli’s second trimester, a spot was identified on the baby’s heart. The doctor told the family that this could be a sign of the baby having Down Syndrome. The family became concerned by the news, but Holli decided to be proactive. She decided to learn more about the disorder and discussed with her family educator about the variety of services and programs available in the community. Taegan arrived as a healthy baby girl, putting her parents’ worries to a rest. Her test results showed no developmental delays and she is now thriving and growing as expected.

It has been difficult for Holli to care for her daughters while Glenn has been away, but she has remained positive and done an exceptional job. Glenn has kept in touch with his girls by talking to them often and coming home to visit. Although Glenn’s job has brought many blessings to the family, they recognize that having the family together is more important. Reuniting the family is now a priority and Holli and Glenn are currently making arrangements to either move to Pennsylvania or find a job for Glenn in Utah.

Glenn & Holli are exemplary parents and EHS values their participation and dedication to the program.

Dakoda is known as “Little Man” but he’s had a big impact on everyone in his three years. He was just 1 lb. 2 oz. when he was born at Provo Hospital and spent 5-3/4 months in the NICU. The hospital referred Dakoda’s mom, Kristy, to Kids On The Move and at 18 months old, he began in the Early Head Start program.

For Dakoda to make incredible progress, it took an entire team of support. Mark, his occupational therapist, got him moving and instantly earned Dakoda’s love and trust. As did Paul and Gary, his other therapists, and Karen, their social worker.

“Dakoda loves all the programs. In the winter, we really enjoyed the motor class,” Kristy said, “Kinder Music with Jessica is wonderful. And we’ll continue to go to the discovery groups at Kids On The Move.”

Kristy has been impressed with progress her “Little Man” has made since he started the program. At one point, Dakoda wasn’t sitting up, crawling or eating solid food. But with his mom’s support and that of the Kids On The Move team, he is now sitting up on his own and eating some table food. Imagine her surprise when she recently found him at the top of the stairs looking totally innocent.

“Dakoda is very playful and he likes toys and games,” mentions Kristy, “And he loves his 11 year-old sister. We’re excited, too, because he has another sister on the way.”

By all accounts, Dakoda is still a little man. “He’s wearing 12-month clothes,” says Kristy.” But in three to four months, she anticipates that he will be walking on his own.  And they’re leaning sign language together, with Dakoda already picking up “drink” and “milk.”

Kristy believes that someday Dakoda will be able to look back and say thank you to all those who helped him live a productive and happy life.

Margie absolutely loves the Early Head Start program and the services she receives for her daughter, Destiny, and son, Mickey. For six years, the family has been involved with Kids On The Move and working with Heather, their family educator.

“Consistency is what the kids respond to,” says mom, Margie, “and Heather has been with us the entire six years. They love when she comes over and the one-on-one counseling really helps me understand my kids’ growth.”

Initially, Destiny was in the Early Intervention program to receive help with her disability. Occupational and physical therapist worked with her movement, to get her from crawling to walking. Also, sensory toys were introduced to develop fine motor skills.

Many other useful items are provided essentially free-of-charge. Throughout the year, Kids On The Move receives donated items for which Margie likes to use her ‘baby bucks.’ Just by being in the Early Head Start program, the family earns money that they can then trade in.

“We love to camp and fish, and Destiny and Mickey will play in the water,” Margie comments. “I see great things in the future for my kids.”

“The best thing about Kids On The Move is that they give you plenty of ideas,” says Lindi, mom to Tyler, Lincoln and Melody. “You get to make a great connection with the other parents and volunteers while the kids interact with other kids. And the activities… we all love them.”

Lindi knew about the benefits of Early Intervention and had Tyler in the program when he was younger. So when Lincoln had some speech delays, she got help from Kids On The Move to set goals for him.

“Lincoln is a pretty smart kid and was developing longer sentences, “Lindi states, “but he was hard to understand. His words were incomplete. We worked with him to solve some issues through speech therapy. He’s very talkative and now I can understand him.”

At first, the family had in-home visits but Lindi found it more beneficial to go the Kids On The Move center. The kids love the play groups, toys and crafts, and mom gets to work with a family educator. “It doesn’t cost us any money to get some help and it’s been enjoyable for Lincoln. He’s reading books now,” says Lindi.

“Six years ago my oldest son, Parker, passed away. He was in the Early Intervention program for about nine months before he died. Everyone at Kids On The Move stood by our family and helped us be more calm about it.”

Like many parents, Tabitha believes her kids are getting too big, too fast. She enjoys them so much when they are little. She also wants to know she and husband, Tony, are raising the kids well.  For that and more, they turned to Kids On The Move for help.

Tabitha learned about the Early Head Start program some time ago from a pregnancy resource center. Ever since, the family has been involved with Kids On The Move and she has relied on Tiffany, as their in-home family educator, for prenatal help.

“All the people at Kids On The Move are happy—I can tell they enjoy their jobs,” Tabitha says. “They also host the parent committee meeting to talk about things with other parents. It’s one of the ways I can find out information and to know we’re right on track.”

Through the program, Tabitha’s four children (daughter Tehya, seven years old; son Tash, four years; and daughter Taeryn, 29 months; daughter Trinity 7 months) have all displayed more confidence, and the family really works together.  As often as they can, they attend family night and the discovery group.

“Kids On The Move really helps us be okay with how our kids are doing,” states Tabitha. “While they play in the ball room or go outside, it’s nice for us to be around other adults and just listen. It has given me ideas about parenting and about things to eat at home, including new menu items.”

“I always want to make sure the kids are caught up or are ahead in school. And whatever they want to do, we will support them. Kids On The Move has given me all the confidence in the world.”

Krysda has an amazing family and many challenges. She and husband Alan are raising five wonderful kids, three of which have a moderate to high-functioning form of autism. In Oregon, they were involved in a program that helped 8-year old Moziah and 7-year old Esaias. But moving to Utah had them searching for an early intervention program for 14-month old Xayvion (who’s now a happy 5-year old).

“Shortly after we arrived, we got a referral to Kids On The Move,” says Krysda. “Xayvion has severe hypotonia and vision problems… he didn’t see for almost a year. We enrolled in both Early Intervention and Early Head Start to get the help we needed. We couldn’t have done it without them.”

Then, Krysda and Alan had twins who also had delays in some areas. Wylona, their only daughter, moved through program while twin brother, Mayzen, who has severe autism, was slower to progress. Therapists Gary and Todd set up weekly in-home visits to work with the two happy 9-month olds. In addition, Shawna, and then Charity, came out to set monthly goals. It was a complete team effort to help the growing family.

“I really appreciate Heather, our family educator,” Krysda states, “ for setting goals for the twins. She works on development that I repeat during the week and then I do ‘in kind hours’ which earns money for the program. It’s my way of giving back.”

Perhaps the most amazing progress has been in Krysda, herself. Social anxiety had completely overwhelmed her and for almost ten years, she hadn’t ventured outside. With counseling from Karen, a social worker, she gained the courage to work on her own issues. She pursued an education program for expectant moms and now attends the Institute of Human Arts.

“My boys are playing with the neighbor kids and learning to socialize,” Krysda says proudly. “And we try to do one big outing a month. We went to Chuck E. Cheese and it was a big deal. My goal is take a family vacation, perhaps a camping trip in a secluded place.”

“I have to consider the emotional ability, not the financial ability. I always wanted to play with the kids and now when we go outside I feel so free. I gave my kids their mom back.”