Website: Children's Harnesses by Elaine, Inc. www.childharness.ca
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Saturday 1 January 2011

What connection does Elaine have with Special Needs?

Since I personally don't have children with special needs, you may be wondering why 50% of my business is helping children with special needs. It's a simple answer really. My sister had Down Syndrome. She was 11 months younger than I and we were as thick as theives right from the get-go. We did everything together and nothing slowed us down. When her wheelchair and oxygen tanks became our constant companions, we took them with us - sometimes with challenging results like the time her chair got stuck in the mud in the forest and we had to "portage" to higher ground. By the time she was 38, her heart had had enough and finally quit completely.

Growing up with an angel as a constant companion undoubtedly influenced my outlook on people and life in general. But I must honestly say I have never thought of anyone with special needs as being too different from anyone else. If they look different on the outside, or if their brains make their body do things beyond their control, they are still just as deserving as the rest of us to feel the sun on their face, the grass along their palms, the ground under their bare feet. They are valuable and cherished members of our communities and if they happen to need a piece of special equipment such as a wheelchair or a harness to be out in our communities, then so what. When I'm 80, I'll be needing a walker!!

A few years ago a family friend asked me if I felt my business was my sister's legacy. I burst into tears and said I certainly feel that way.

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