Those of us who know and love my niece Heidi, also know that she has a difficult road to walk. She has Type 1 Diabetes which by itself is a hard thing for a child to live with. And then stuttering on top of that. For years she has bravely faced it and fought against it but lately it has become more pronounced and difficult to live with. With the added stress of trying to keep blood glucose in range, the fight has become more complex. As she is getting older, its become apparent that local speech therapy is no longer enough. Heidi is starting to withdraw more and more in social settings and so frustrated when she cannot bring out the words to express herself. She's choosing silence when she has so many things she wants to say, which is heartbreaking.

Heidi has been accepted into a program called ISTAR, Institute for Stuttering Treatment and Research. The facility is located in Edmonton. They are connected to the University of Alberta Hospital, but treatment is not funded by the government or covered under medical. The cost of the program is $5000. Heidi had a 90 minute evaluation via Zoom and has met all the criteria for being a candidate for this program. The program runs July 4 - 22, 2022. Heidi will be in class every day from 9 to 3, for three weeks. She and her mom will stay at the Edmonton Mennonite Guest Home for the duration.

Please consider helping out with what you can. Any small donation is much appreciated. Thank you to each one for reading to the end.. and please pray for Heidi as well.