“My husband, and the youngest of my 3 sons, both have dyslexia. I knew my husband had it, but I didn’t know it was hereditary. My first 2 kids had no issues and were good students, but my youngest son struggled even in 4 year old kindergarten. I became his biggest advocate, and that’s what was the catalyst for me getting so involved with dyslexia. It’s been amazing being the Director of the Children’s Dyslexia Center. I see so many kids come through the program, and they all kind of come in the same way. They come in deflated and frustrated, like nothing is going to help them, but then, as their confidence develops and their self esteem increases, everything about them changes. They just carry themselves prouder and taller and they’re much more confident. With that, comes the knowledge and belief that they can excel not only in the classroom, but everywhere. They think about things from a different perspective, which can make them really good at it, and just having that confidence allows them to excel in a lot of different areas. I think those kind of successes, both in school and outside of school, just really contribute to the overall health and well being of each student, their families, and the community. It’s so fun to watch that happen. We know that dyslexia affects up to 20% of the population. That’s 1 in 5 people. That’s huge. When my son was diagnosed, we decided we were going to learn everything we possibly could to support him and his teachers. Through elementary school, we were able to provide them with a lot of resources, and they were really receptive. So, my passion stems from wanting to help my kid, but knowing that if I helped his teachers, it would help so many other kids.”