When I wrote about the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) a few years ago in a piece titled, Reflections on #ADA27, here for Disabled Parenting Project (DPP), I largely focused on my daughter and inclusion. As I reflect on it today for #ADA30, not much has changed, and yet so much has changed all at […]
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Missing my Daughter: Reflections from a Disabled Dad During the Coronavirus
My thirteen-year-old daughter is sick. Cough, fever, and the rest. By now we all know the symptoms. COVID- 19? Who knows? There are no testing kits. What I do know is that I have to be especially careful as a high-risk person with cerebral palsy, asthma, and chronic bronchitis. So, I assume it’s everywhere – […]
School’s Touching Accommodations
If you are a parent, you know the feeling of pride that comes from watching your child(ren) perform in a school play or sing at an event; you’ve experienced the joy that occurs when you visit the classroom or engage in school activities with your child(ren). But, imagine if you had to stay outside the […]
Mommy’s Nervous About Kindergarten, too!
Today, my daughter began Kindergarten. For the past several days, she’s expressed the typical fears and nervousness about starting at a new school with a new teacher in a new building with new friends to make and so on…. We talked about her feelings and I tried to help calm her anxiety by pointing out […]
A Party Invitation Also Invites a Change in Perspective
Typically, when my daughter receives an invitation to a party, I’m excited. I’m thrilled for her and look forward to having fun together while celebrating a special occasion, usually a birthday. Yet a birthday invitation came for a slightly older friend who was having her party at the skating rink. Now, there are several physical […]
A Place to Call Home
This morning I offered the following prayer to the universe. “When caring, empathy, and concern for the common good seems in increasingly short supply, the weight of life seems heavy. Lord, as we fight in the here and now, bring us into your kingdom should we fall to the forces of this world.” For those […]
Taking Care of Myself (and Cora!)
Hey guys! I haven’t posted on here in forever. It’s been a combination of writer’s block and having a lot on my plate. Like, you know, this amazing and beautiful little girl that my wife and I made, Cora. I spend most of my time making her smile and coo at me. So, this blog sort of […]
Letting Go of “I’ve Got This!”
For so long, I’ve prided myself on my independence, on my ability to remain living alone with my child, on my capacity to raise my daughter with little outside help. I think having so many movements and physical activities stripped from me has given me a higher regard for that which I’m still able to […]
Losing my Daughter
My name is Alice Goltz. On April 13, 2007, I had a baby girl. The next day, two men came into my hospital room, stating that they were from the Vermont Department of Children and Families and were taking custody of my daughter. The state of Vermont had already made up their minds that they […]
Adventures in Disabled Parenting
“You’ll never have children.” I distinctly remember the conversation with my doctor when I was 18, and at the time that was the farthest thought from my mind so it really didn’t bother me. I thought, “I’ll have nieces and nephews and that will fill that void if I ever feel it.” Being born with […]