Help Keep the Rise Magic Alive!

Ogden is in his fourth year at Rise. It is hard to believe our time may be coming to a close. The last four years flew by in the blink of an eye. It is remarkable that  every year gets better and better with all that Rise has to offer families like ours.

Unfortunately we have had a hard year with Oggie’s health. We have been hospitalized on two  separate occasions with pneumonia and low oxygen issues. On top of that we now have a celiac and type 1 diabetes diagnosis. Being in the hospital is hard enough trying to recover, but even more difficult because he loses his strengths physically, mentally and verbally. The Rise school stood behind us at every hurdle to ensure Oggie would be back to his usual self in no time. They helped us come up with a plan moving forward with his new diagnosis’.  His team even visited us in the hospital and brought toys / tools that allowed Oggie to have familiar things to aid his recovery.

Oggie has access to every therapy service he needs and helps him grow stronger and smarter daily. The inclusive model that Rise provides allows all the children to participate in therapy (imagine that)! They do not isolate and pull Oggie or the other special needs children out. It is a group activity always. 

The friendships we have made with other families (special needs and typical) now feel like we are one big family. We all chat daily and are there for each other at the drop of a hat. Why? Because we love everyone’s child as if they were our own. It made having a scary diagnosis 4.5 years ago something we are beyond proud of. Oggie works hard every day and spreads his love to all. 

 The Rise School officially launched as a nonprofit in 2003 when six families with young children with Down syndrome came together to create our inclusive preschool - one that has touched the lives of hundreds of families over the years since then, including ours!

Rise is a place where every child is included and genuine friendships are fostered every day along with individualized learning goals that develop each child's strengths. Rise provides a low adult-to-child ratio, master's degree teachers, highly trained teacher assistants, and expert therapists who enrich the development of every child with and without disabilities.

To keep tuition accessible and affordable for all our families, tuition only covers 43% of Rise's operating costs. The remaining 57% is raised through grants and donations, which is why I'm sharing my personal fundraising page with you. The Rise School is proud to be celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, but we need your help to make sure Rise is here for another 20 years. Please consider donating this holiday season to Rise so families like ours can continue to bring their children here for many years to come.

Happy Holidays!