I'm Coming Home, South Carolina!

Hallelujah!
I'm going home to South Carolina!!

Four years ago I moved to Florida for a change. Although it was a year after my "then" boyfriend" moved, I was supposed to move before him. The move was prompted by a need from both of us for a change. When we first met, we talked about where we would like to go. I had two choices... Florida and North Carolina. His two choices were Florida and Virginia.

During our first three years together we discussed it often. His reasons were not the same as mine, but none-the-less, we both had the state of Florida in common. His needs included a more positive and progressive educational experience for his autistic daughter. Mine was a desire for a different and more multi-faceted social experience for my sons. I also had been in SC for 25 years and I just needed a good-old-fashioned-plain-old change!

So, in 2004, my "boyfriend" moved to Florida in between hurricanes and electrical storms. One year later, I followed. Sierra had experienced a pretty good school experience here for one year, but the school faced some financial restructuring that did not include autism. So, in to the public school systems she went.

What a miserable experience for us all. We spent a lot of time, picking her up from school early. They didn't have the training and the manpower to manage a classroom full of autistic children. For a short time she went to a school which was attended by students of any and every disability in the area. Another fiasco.

One of my sons improved considerably here and the older was moving quick to "nowhere". I made some school changes for him that started him on his way to a greatly improved mental condition. But, the program got greedy and didn't want to release him back into the typical public school environments.

Well, I rebelled and had my oldest son "deployed" to my home state to live with my brother in the Charleston area. He has continued to improve so much. This child is college bound with more self-control and discipline than I could ever imagine.

My youngest son has gone from being 3 grade levels behind (in the third grade, he wasn't reading at the 1st grade reading level when we moved here) to right on target with just a minimal amount of tutoring needed to manage at his appropriate 6th grade level. I believe that as long as I remain attentive to his educational needs and progress, he can continue to improve.

Sierra has had a great experience at a new school, Princeton House Charter School. She has learned and grown so much. WE have all grown! Not only does the school teach and train the children, but the parents as well. She has just started her 3rd year there.

By now you may be wondering,

if the children that remain in our household are doing well,

why would we be considering a move?

-We have no family support here.
-My "then boyfriend" and "now husband" has experienced deteriorating health issues which have been attributed to the hot and humid climate in other cases... so maybe his, too.
-At my age, I have enough "personal summers" on my own. To have these hot flashes in this climate is beyond miserable for me.
-... and did I say, We have no family here?
Well, we have no family here. (3 times a charm!)

For three of the four years, I have done google searches every 2 to 3 months to see what "new thing" is happening in South Carolina, Georgia, North Carolina, and even Northern Florida for Autism.

-There is a school Georgia, but it is so far west I might as well stay here.
-North Carolina drew a blank. Nothing.
-Northern Florida has them but some tuitions ranging from $500/month - $34,000/year!

Sierra's school is free! We'll stay here first.

We recently started looking at Charlottesville, VA. There is a school there and my husband's parents are there.

Now, this school hasn't opened yet. They have a start date pending of Fall 2009, but you can visit their website if you go to my list of links on the right-side menus and check out what they have so far. Funding will be needed and appreciated because it will cost $35,000 per year per child.

If you can help financially, please do. If you can't, meditate on it or say a prayer or both.

It has already been put out into the universe as a possitive and real solution to a real challenge.

In 2009, a school for Autism will be in South Carolina, People!!
MUSC is right in the same city! So, the medical situations will be promising at the least!
My middle son is in the same city!
My oldest son just 2 hours away!

Now I am going to look at educational opportunities for my youngest son!
and a job for myself!

Pray for a sistah!

_____________________

shYne