Remarkable people

I work with one of the most amazing people.  This fellow and his wife had tried for almost 10 years to have a child, when they gave up, they decided to take in a foster child. They went through all the certifications and classes and agreed to take on two little girls who had lived through the most horrible home life imaginable. They were 6 and 2 and were found by CFS crawling around an apartment, naked, eating garbage, both of their parents being crack and meth addicts.  Neither of the children could speak or had any social skills whatsoever. They were terrified of people and used to being abused and neglected.  He and his wife took these children into their home and began the long, very long process of teaching the children to speak, teaching them to dress themselves, trying to impose some sense of order into their lives.  They have worked so hard to give them a home that they love and make them feel wanted and give them some happiness.  Both children have behavorial problems and some form of learning disabilities from their mother using drugs during her pregnancies.

Two years ago, the mother became pregnant again, he and his wife agreed to take on the baby, trying to keep the family of children together.  They brought the little boy home from the hospital after he was born and they have officially adopted all three children within the last year.  You hear all kinds of horror stories about foster care, but they are one family that shows that sometimes it does work to the benefit of the children.  They have had a hard road, and will continue to, but he never complains and is happy to have the family they always wanted.

By the way, i love this thread.  You always hear about the bad things people do, the world seems like such a cruel place sometimes and people seem selfish, its nice to read about so many wonderful people out there, gives me hope for the world my daughter is growing up in.

I would like to nominate the Burmese activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner, Aung San Suu Kyi, who has just celebrated her 60th birthday after 10 years house arrest.

Ms Suu Kyi's late husband, the British lecturer Michael Aris, was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 1997. The Burmese government denied him an entry visa and Ms Suu Kyi remained in Burma, not meeting him again before he died in 1999. She continues to be separated from their children in the UK.


http://www.guardian.co.uk/burma/story/0,13373,1508121,00.html

I second this nomination.
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is not only an activist and winner of the Nobel but she IS the elected leader of Burma. She could have gone back to the UK but her and her husband agreed for her to remain in Burma. She is a strong woman. I found that very emotional as unless she had access to a smuggled satellite phone (unlikely) she would have never spoken directly to her husband the last few years of his life.
Her road has been blocked off for years and with miltary guards at either end of the street.
She must have feared for her life many times over since the election. Yet she could leave the country and be free again. I wish I had 1/10th her courage.


PS This is a GREAT a thread...thanks Graham

my mother is an amazing woman...when I was a teenager my grandmother (her mother) lived with us and was suffering from Parkinson's disease. For 8 years my mother helped my grandmother dress and bath and put her to bed each night. She was her carer. At the same time she was doing this...she was raising 3 kids and working full time..she always gave everything she was and even though she was stressed out and tired she always had a positive attitude. Shortly after my grandmother died in 1992 my father became ill. He has congestive heart failure, type 2 diabetes, and chronic lung disease. He was doing ok for a few years. But in recent years he has been put on oxygen and can't walk as much as he used to. My mother is back to being a carer. She helps him shower when he needs it. She makes sure he has all his medications straight. She takes him wherever he needs since he can't drive. Again she is doing all of this while working a full time job. She comes home and spends her evenings with my father. Maybe sitting with him watching a show she isn't interested in. Just so she can spend time for him and he doesn't feel alone. She is a very remarkable person.
But I would also say that my father is remarkable. On a daily basis he is in pain and he sometimes suffers spells where he can't breathe...he used to be a very active man.  A volunteer firefighter and he would build cabinets and do handy work for people just to help out. Ever since his illness has become worse it has slowed him down tremendously. But he still finds the strength to do little projects like make benches and birdhouses. Sometimes it wears him completley out. Because of his diabetes he has wounds that won't heal and can bleed at the drop of a hat. His legs shake all the time and sometime it keeps him awake...and even though he is in this pain he doesn't give up. He keeps going on living his life. There was a time last year when he became so depressed he seriously contemplated suicide. But he realized he loved his family too much and that he is lucky enough to be alive. I love both my parents more then I can say and think they are both remarkable in their own way

I have loved reading everyones stories of the people that have made a difference in their lives.