Our disabled son has no brothers or sisters and although we have made arrangements for his care when we are unavailable, my wife and I are able to rest easier knowing a competent and caring advocate will be available to make sure our son is receiving needed care and support.
My elder brother has been supported by By Their Side (& its' predecessor) for more than35 years. When our parents passed, since both other brothers were in the military and overseas, By Their Side was his sole advocate. not that the organizations overseeing his day-to-day well-being don't care they are overwhelmed and the children suffer the consequences and don't get the care they need and deserve!During economic down trends, the government support money for these organization providing the care goes elsewhere and the children are even more in limbo and there is nowhere for the organizations to turn.
By Their Side has ensured that my brother and many other have had someone who really looks out for their medical and mental heal, how they are doing and how they are being treated, the comfort level of their existence, and planning for the future. Our family cannot say enough good things about how they have looked out after him because we are not available to be their to watch over him as we would like to be.
By Their Side has been a great asset to my brother and the family for all these years. This non-profit looks out for the welfare of these special needs individuals, many who no longer have family or family who is physically not close enough to properly oversee their existence. The service they perform for these incapacitated (physically or mentally) children/adults is crucial the their well-being, happiness and often become the only family they have when their blood family pass. I cannot thank them enough for the services they provide to many, but especially for all they have done for my brother!
Our family has belonged to By Their Side for about ten years. They are a wonderful organization. Our son, age 31, has Down syndrome. He is living in a group home and is employed with employment support from a state-funded agency, but we are 72, so we worry about who will look out for his overall interests when we are gone. We also have a daughter, but she lives out of state so cannot follow her brother's needs and situation in real time. We are counting on By Their Side to fill that role. Since becoming members, we have been very involved with the organization, and we are tremendously impressed with their competence and their caring. They have helped us when we had problems with our son's provider agencies. We have a special needs trust for our son, and we are counting on By Their Side to work with our daughter and the trustee to make sure that the money is used to enhance his life, and we are counting on them to keep our daughter informed about her brother's situation. Having By Their Side involved just gives us tremendous peace of mind.
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My family has belonged to By Their Side for six years, and I love the organization so much that I became a volunteer board member. We are counting on them to look after our son's interests after we are gone, and make sure that his trust fund is used to enhance his life. By Their Side has also helped us to already to navigate the disabilities support system and to resolve disagreements with his service providers. It is a great organization with a caring and professional staff as well as very dedicated volunteer leadership.
By Their Side provides expert advice and guidance for families navigating services for family members with intellectual disabilities.
I have 2 daughters with developmental disabilities. My husband and I have always worried about what will happen to the girls when we are no longer here. Neither side of the family is very involved with our girls. When our youngest was 6 months old, we heard about By Their Side (then MTRC) and decided to enroll. Over the years we have begun to realize just how much of a role By Their Side will play when the time comes for both our girls and the family member who has agreed to step up and watch out for them. To ensure this wonderful organization remains solvent and still exists at that time, I have become a Board member and have served for the past 10 years. I have seen and heard first hand about some of the great opportunities this organization has been involved in for our clients and our family recently hired By Their Side to assist us in getting through the application process for residential placement. Read the information on the website or call the office, they will be happy to talk to you and answer any questions you may have.
We enrolled our son back when this organization was just getting off the ground and were so happy to find an organization dedicated to continue oversight of his care when we were no longer around! That is always one of the major worries of parents with lifelong dependent children. It's one peace of mind amidst the chaos. We have been so pleased at the rate and way it has grown in services that can be provided and the structure of the organization. Jeanne Walsh
By Their Side gives us peace of mind to know that there will order in our son's life and his assets and needs will be protected.
We have belonged to By Their Side since its early days and have been amazed at how they have expanded their professionalism and programming. Our daughters will definitely be calling on By Their Side to help supervise their brother's care once we're gone. We also learned about the efficacy of having "family meetings" at a By Their Side meeting, and have put it into practice with great success.
By Their Side is extremely proactive in monitoring and evaluating my brother's care. He is in a terrific program that is absolutely perfect. His care is beyond expectations. Even in this circumstance, it is helpful to have By Their Side involved in evaluating his care. They take action and communicate with me long before I have questions. What a great partner.
We enrolled our older daughter in By Their Side in 2007, and are confident that it will assist her younger sister in overseeing her personal needs after we have departed this life. Having this resource will enable our younger daughter to pursue her career and dreams, without being solely responsible for such oversight. Not encumbering the younger sibling, so to speak, has been our lifelong goal. We are relieved that By Their Side will have the resources and volunteers to support its clients' needs.
This organization advocates for my retarded sister. They do a great job. Very professional, knowledgeable and efficient. I would highly recommend By Their Side as your advocate. Their name says it all-they are truly by their side.
My daughter has been enrolled in the By Their Side program since 1988. Initially, and to this day, it is greatly comforting to know that when she becomes an active client, caring individuals will diligently advocate for her best interests throughout her life.
Our only child is disabled and we worry about who will take our place. Bytheirside is composed of caring parents and professionals who can help take up the slack and help trustees and other family members oversee the care and safety of disabled family members when their parents are no longer able. They make wise use of their resources, too! They also help educate parents and family members on the rights and services available to the disabled in our state and how to navigate the system.
Our son Douglas Volkman has been enrolled in this program since 1993. As a parent and a professional in the ID field, I have learned the "ins and outs" of the system, However, his brother does not have that advantage, and we enrolled so that he would have support to make informed decisions about the life of his brother when we are no longer around. Although Doug does not yet reciev any services, it is comforting to know that expert help is just a phone call away!
My brother is developmentally disabled. Years ago my father got in touch with this organization but as we were children then I did not know this. Now my brother is 61 and I am 67. My parents are gone. But almost right after they passed (13 years ago now) ani credible woman got in touch with me and my brother and got him settled in his own place witha roommate and helped me with all the DDA paperwork and got my brother something he always wanted - independence and self- confidence to take a job and to eventually have his own apartment and the help to keep his independence. When my brother was growing up there wasn't much out there for him or for my parents. A doctor told them he should be institutionalized but they kept him homeland gave him a beautiful life with tons of love and affection. This has remained with him. He is a wonderful man and had this happened today I am confident I saying that his life may have been greatly different. He is high functioning but I am convinced that the dedicated people at By Their Side saw that in him and helped bring out even more those qualities in my brother. I am forever indepted to By Their Side!
My sister is a developmentally disabled individual who lives far away from me, and my elderly parents are no longer able to advocate for her well being. What to do? By Their Side steps in and makes sure people with developmental disabilities are properly looked after when no one else is around to do it. They are a God send.
Our Son, now 44, has been a member since 1985. We have been so grateful for the peace of mind that By their Side provides in assuring that as we get older and possibly unable to advocate for our son, they will be there to step in and work on his behalf. His siblings live out of state and may not always be directly involved in his advocacy with the agencies, and services that he receives . By their Side will fill that direct support. We joined when he was young, but now realized as we get older how important it is to have this support program.
I've known about this non profit since 1990 while employed by a MD funded advocacy agency for people with developmental disabilities. I always felt this was a perfect option for families who could feel that their loved one would always have an advocate during their lifetime and especially for when they pass on. No matter what other agencies were involved in their loved ones life, they knew there would always be this constant they could count on