♪ Always be strong.

♪ - She was determined.

♪ And never give up ♪ Determined to live.

- She was cancer free.

(uplifting music) - I feel like I was in really good hands and I can't say nothing about the treatment that I got.

- Things do change, nothing stays static.

A new day will come.

(uplifting music) - Welcome to "Hope is Here."

I'm Carla Hill.

When you have children you are naturally inclined to want all the best for them.

Health, happiness, and eventually independence.

Parents of special needs children are no different.

Yet removing the barriers to independence is a much bigger challenge.

Here's how one family, a very special foundation, and a forward thinking hospital system are empowering individuals with intellectual disabilities with hope, confidence, and a sense of self-worth.

(speaking in a foreign language) - This boys, when they came to my life, there is absolutely no doubt that they changed my life.

They made me a better mom.

They made me a better friend.

They just made me better, a better person.

Yaah.

Like I didn't know the meaning of patience and I would've never thought in my wildest dream that I will have three boys with this unique abilities and special needs because they are very special.

- Thank God, oh God.

- It's your mother.

- Oh God, here we go.

- It's your mother.

- My name is Dorcas Gonzalez and I have three amazing, interesting boys.

(piano playing) - Well, the three boys have Fragile X which is an inherited genetic condition dealing with intellectual disability.

It puts them within the autism spectrum.

- Once Michael came to my life and I started seeing different behaviors and not being able to express himself, not being able to say a word, and then I started building up that patience and God helped me through it all and still helps me through it all.

And then Alexander came to my life and it was a such a beautiful baby, very calm, very soothing, But then again, then he started growing a little bit more and having those times with he couldn't express himself.

And that is when other behaviors coming to play.

- [Anthony] And the whole picture came together when our middle son, Alexander, had a seizure.

And with that seizure, somebody realized that, hey, maybe all three boys have some type of developmental delay, an intellectual disability, now fall into this autism spectrum.

(upbeat music) - This is my purpose, I realize that this is my purpose.

So when you realize that this is your purpose given by God then you make the best out of it.

You really do.

(bright upbeat music) The kids, I never treated them like special needs kids.

I treated them equal, like any other kid that I will have in my house.

And when they will ask me to get them something, as simple as that, I would tell them, "Okay let's go together and let's do it But next time you gonna do it by yourself."

No, aha.

I'm gonna show you and then next time you gonna do it by yourself.

Put the detergent and... And whatever you put here in your little mind to do, you can do it.

Say, "I can do it."

And I used to tell them, I used to put them in front of the mirror when they were little and do affirmations.

"I can."

That's what they could do.

"I can, I am the best."

Alexandra is the best.

Michael is the best.

Joseph is the best.

There's nothing that you don't put in your mind that you cannot do.

- And so we pushed them, we pushed them to do everything they can.

And so we created a program at Baptist Health to help those young adults.

And so we began with work experience, getting them exposed to what real life is about.

Work is very important, work is fulfilling, work gives you something to do, work gives you the ability to contribute back to your society, and also it's personally, it creates independence for you because it allows a lot of growth in your personal life as well as allows you the finances to become independent as well.

So Michael works at the distribution center at Baptist Health, it's what we call the supply chain.

- When I get here I clock in and I do boxes.

- [Anthony] Alexander works at the Berry Farms down in the Redlands and Homestead, and he helps there.

That is an agri-tourism location.

- I like to, yeah, I'd like to learn.

- Joseph, he is working at the cafeteria at Baptist Hospital of Miami.

And he works there on Fridays as part of his work experience with a job coach or a shadow that helps him and really understand what employment is about, what his roles are so he can accomplish the goals of being an employee in the cafeteria at Baptist Hospital.

- [Joseph] Good on there.

- So I think the biggest thing is, that makes me so proud of my three boys is the fact that I was told that they were not gonna be able to talk and they speak two languages and I proved them wrong.

And I said, "What?

No, my kids are going to talk."

And the fact that they're able to be so functional and be able to go to work, do things on their own, that I see that they can have their own lives, I think it's just makes us happy, proud, so so proud of them.

- I want to welcome Dr. Anthony Gonzalez and his wife Dorcas to our show.

Thank you so much for joining us Gonzalez family.

Dr. Gonzalez, what does work do for those with special needs beyond just the pride it probably instills in them?

- Well, obviously work gives all of us a purpose.

Gives us something to wake up and do.

It's our mission, it's our calling, you know, everybody has a calling, everybody has a desire.

As a youngster, you wanna be an astronaut or you wanna be a an athlete and be a movie star, but you know, you wanna be able to wake up and have a purpose and have something to do.

And when you have nothing to do, whether you're a, let's say, a mainstream adult or you have nothing to do and you're a somebody with intellectual challenges, then that becomes an emotional problem, a psychological problem, leads to mental illness.

So we see it, we see it in our own children.

The difference, especially in the pandemic where we had our first child, got caught with the pandemic at home, and that period of time was just not great.

And now back at work he wakes up two, three hours before work time, he's ready to go two hours before work because that is what he wants to do, that is his calling, he takes great joy in what he's doing and what he's contributing to the facility where he's working.

- What was it like years ago when you were trying to mainstream your first son?

Did you get kickback?

How did you deal with that challenge?

- You advocate and you advocate and you advocate a little bit more and you're just there.

I remember going to the region and begging for them to be able to give me the individualized educational plan so we can have that meeting so we can place them in the right classroom, in the right setting.

So it was very challenging.

It was very challenging because it was not, nobody knew so much about it, so it was very difficult.

But because of being persistent and consistent and advocating and making it happen for them, I think a lot of the same teachers and the principal learn, I found that not only I was learning, but they were learning from me and learning how to deal with my child.

- I now want to introduce Lily de Moya, CEO and president of The de Moya Foundation, an empowering organization that has helped the Gonzalez sons over the years find employment along with countless other individuals with unique abilities.

Lily, how did you come about helping young adults with special needs and who was your inspiration?

- So, you know, when my son graduated from high school, he came to us and said, you know, "Am I registered to go to college?"

And that just was not a possibility at that moment.

My son is very determined, defiant, stubborn, there is no no and he will always just go forward to what he wants to do.

And he motivated me and gave me the drive to spend the last 25, 28 years of my life in the disability world.

And so I went out and I did all this research and put together a program.

I was able to get FIU to open a program which is a transition program for students with developmental disabilities.

And he was the first graduate of that program.

But when he came out of that program, he went straight to work for my husband's company which is a bridge and road construction company.

Since he was a little boy, he wanted to be an engineer.

So there was no question that he had a job, this was a family business.

But when he went to work and I saw the gaps, I saw the lack of resource, the lack of support for him and for the employees, I realized that we had this huge bridge that we needed to cross to get him to the other side to be successful.

And so I went on my own personal journey to put supports in place and make sure that that would happen.

It took about two to three years to really get the staff, the employer, the surrounding support around him, the coworkers and himself to a place where I felt he was really contributing to the workplace and that it was beneficial to him.

But that wasn't enough for me.

I felt that there was a whole world out there of young adults like him that did not have the support that I had been able to put into place.

And so I just did a small fundraiser, created a board, and put my brain to work, and I put together a very customized employment model that would provide support not just to the employee but to the employer.

It's about long-term employment outcomes that is going to lead them to independence.

- Dorcas, The de Moya Foundation calls those with special needs, you know, they have these unique abilities.

What are the unique abilities or the superpowers, if you will, of your sons?

- The superpower?

Well, each one of them is, they're completely different because in a household, everybody's different, right?

But Michael is very, I think it has empowered him so much for the way he's very social, he's shy, he's timid, but once he loves what he does, he is like a sunshine.

And when you ask him, "Michael, do you love where you at?"

He says, "I love it.

Like I love it."

He loves being able, he feels so important in the distribution center that he's able to distribute all these different boxes and all these different things that they send to either offices, to the hospitals and he feels very proud of that.

And Joseph is a social butterfly and he loves, he goes there on Fridays and he works there only for hours because it's in the FIU and Praise Program for now.

And he loves it.

He just loves the fact that he's able to talk to people, socialize, he's learning how to, everybody that comes around, the nurses, the doctors that come to have their lunch at the cafeteria, he already knows what they're gonna eat so he starts preparing it once they start walking inside the cafeteria.

And Alexandra, Alexandra is very happy.

He had to stop for a while because he had a seizure, but he's starting to, now he just went to the farm last week and little by little he's working at the berries farm and little by little he is getting incorporated into his job again.

So we're very happy about that.

- The landscape is slowly changing and giving way to opportunities for those with special abilities.

Later on, we will talk about just how far we've come but first I wanna shed light on another foundation that is giving opportunities to those who are striving to work towards independence.

(gentle music) - I love my job.

I feel good.

Fantastic.

- I like my job very much because I'm independent.

You guys are my family and friends.

- Baptist Health sponsors the Wow organization, they have for several years.

And the corporate support team decided that they wanted to participate in the community outreach program.

And we decided from that that we wanted to provide a couple of positions for individuals with disabilities within our department.

- [Julie] So adults with developmental disabilities have a strong desire and a right to live meaningful and productive lives just like everybody else.

Unfortunately, there's still many misconceptions about this population that really make it difficult for them to have opportunities in the workplace.

In 2022, only 21.3% of persons with a disability were employed.

So we want our community to experience individuals, strengths, and weaknesses in the workplace.

- [Cindy] We now have Annie who is the clerical support for the executive office.

We also have David who supports the cafe, and Jerome who also supports the corporate cafe.

The corporate support team also participates in their annual holiday party celebration.

- The partnership that we've had with Baptist Health, South Florida has been such a fundamental part in the lives of Anna, David, and Jerome.

They have thrived, they have become so much more independent and we really see that they have a sense of purpose that comes from it.

- As a leader, I couldn't be more proud and honored to participate in this initiative and lead a team that has so embraced this important program.

- Yah.

(gentle music) - Oh my goodness, what joy that this brings to all of us.

But when we talk about children with special needs we do have to think about and talk about the hard questions.

You know, as a young mother or a father who struggles with the worries that come with not only being a new parent but navigating the world of special needs and on the flip side, you become an older parent and we're living longer, we are eating better, you know, what do you think about now as you face your mortality and think about, and this is for all of you, and you think about your children's future and securing that future.

- Yeah, we've given it a lot of thought.

That's why we work so hard today in trying to create as much independence as possible and really limiting the crutch that they may use us as so they can begin to prepare for themselves when they're alone.

Of course there's a lot of planning, you know, estate planning that goes into that and custodial planning and really succession planning.

But we worry about that, of course that's something that we worry about.

And since there are all three special needs, we don't have a sibling who could oversee them and would have the expected same life expectancy as them.

So we have to reach out to others, extended family, people that have been childhood friends to help both on the custodial side and oversight as well as on the management of the finances side so that there is appropriate care for them long term.

But yes, that's a reality, something we are concerned about.

But we vocalize that with them, we explain that and they understand it.

They don't wanna believe it they don't wanna voice it back, but they understand that we can't be there forever.

- Yeah, we always talk about it and we said, "Mom and dad are not gonna be here for the rest of your lives."

And they say, "No, you're always gonna be here."

And of course we, for them to understand even more, like as simple as preparing a lunch or getting ready or making their own food, you know, it's things that, just imagine that we're not here, what would you do?

And it's the toughest thing, I guess as a mother it's even more and I think Lily can understand that.

I become very sentimental when it comes to that because it's definitely very difficult.

But at the same time, it's believing and having faith that everything is gonna be okay.

We do our job, we do what we need to do, we prepare them for the future when we're not here, when we are not around but we have the faith that God is gonna take care of it.

- Thank you for being so vulnerable and and talking with our audience about that.

Lily, what is your message to parents when they come to you with these concerns at the foundation?

- Yeah, like Dorcas said, you know, it's very emotional because you obviously worry about what's gonna happen the day that you're not here.

And again, at our house, we talk about it, of course when I tell my son, you know, "What are you gonna do when I'm not here?"

He's got all kinds of answers, he's gonna call Uber Eats, and he's gonna call Uber and he is gonna call his brother and he's got this all under control.

But the reality is that it's a very, very scary thought because no matter how much you prepare them and no matter how much you tried to make them independent, in your heart as a mom, you know that there's no one who's gonna do what you do for them today.

But you have to have faith and hope that the support system that you put into place is going to step in and do the best you can, the best they can.

But more importantly, you have to prepare them, and that's what I tell parents.

You have to prepare them to their maximum potential.

You can't underestimate them, you have to push and you have to let go.

But what I tell parents is exactly that, I tell them, "Think about where you want your son or daughter to be the day you are not here.

Because one day you will not be here.

You need to know before you're gone.

You need to prepare them.

And you need to know what their maximum potential is before you're gone."

They don't wanna find out later what they can't do.

You wanna find out now everything they can do.

- I appreciate all of you so much.

We appreciate you all for, I mean I'm getting emotional myself but this show is called "Hope is Here."

And for each one of you, what is your message of hope for parents or families that have children with special needs, new parents in particular that have children with special needs.

What is that message of hope that each one of you would like to impart to our audience today?

- I will say for parents to continue doing their work, to continue challenging them, making them better, in this society, incorporating and including them everywhere they go, everything that they do.

And to teach 'em.

And they will, there is hope.

There is hope that one day they are going to succeed.

Because if I look back, like I was telling my husband the other night, I said, "If we look back at all the days that a lot of the counselors, that they told us that Michael, we don't think that Michael is never gonna be able to go out there and have a job."

And I will always answer with a lot of respect.

I know that the day that he loves something, he's going to be able to do it and he will succeed.

So parents, be persistent, be consistent, have faith.

It can be done.

They have the potential.

They all have a purpose and they all have a calling and it can be done.

And look for that support system because it takes a village.

It's not only you by yourself, you cannot do it.

But when you start, look at all the resources that we have now.

Go for it.

Go for it, and advocate for them and make them successful.

Have hope.

- That is so powerful.

They all have a calling.

We all have a calling, every human being.

Lily, what is your message of hope for new parents?

- So my son is 32 years old and I have been involved in the disability world for, like I said, like 28 years.

And people don't realize that the first law that actually gave our kids a right and any rights to get a public education for services was in 1975.

That law did not really trickle down into society and into our communities until the 80's.

So it wasn't that long ago.

And we have come such a long way and new parents need to understand that the road has been paved and that now they need to get on board and move forward.

Never leave any stone unturned, that has always been my mantra.

Until I have all the information that I can possibly get my hands on, I don't make decisions.

And looking at everything that is out there now, that wasn't there before, don't get stuck in the now.

Look into the future.

There is hope for the future.

There is journey into the future and you need to always look forward and never look backwards and just one day at a time, one step at a time, and maybe three steps forward and one backwards, but then you move forward again.

There is a lot of hope and you never give up hope.

You can never give up hope.

- Oh my gosh, that's it.

That is the message of this show.

You know, thank you all so much for your message of hope, giving young adults with special needs the opportunity to be included in the community while finding their confidence and learning new skills.

I mean, it is a wonderful mission and I commend all of you for continuing this vital work.

Thank you so much for being here with us today on "Hope is Here."

And thank you for joining us today on "Hope is Here."

Thank you everyone.

What a powerful show.

Thank you.

(bright upbeat music)