165 – Chad Lunt of Menlo Park, CA Reflects On Raising A Daughter with Type 1 Spinal Muscular Atrophy

Our guest this week is Chad Lunt of Menlo Park, CA. Chad is married to Cherisse and they have three children including Lucy, age 12, who has Type 1 Spinal Muscular Atrophy. We’ll hear how the Lunt family through their faith, along with help from the Tess Research Foundation, the Gwendolyn Strong Foundation and the miracle drug Spinraza has helped Lucy overcome. And about their hopes for the future in this Special Fathers Network Dad to Dad Podcast.
Tess Research Foundation – https://www.tessresearch.org
Gwendolyn Strong Foundation – https://nevergiveup.org
Email Chad – chad.t.lunt@gmail.com
Cherisse’s Instagram: @chertlunt
Transcript:
Tom Couch: Special, thanks to horizon therapeutics for sponsoring today’s special father’s network, dad to dad podcast, working tirelessly to research, develop and bring forward medicines for people living with rare and rheumatic diseases. Discover more about horizon therapeutics, mission at horizon therapeutics .com
Chad Lunt: lots of SMA type one, children don’t have the ability to speak. And so these parents, these amazing parents are perceiving eye twitches and eyebrow raises and tounge movements. And that’s how they know what that child needs. And so we’re fortunate that Lucy can speak, but once we can start understanding and how to routine and methods to address.
Kind of more stressful or dangerous situations that made just a huge difference. That’s
Tom Couch: our guests this week, Chad Lunt, Chad is married to Cherisse and the two of them have three children, including Lucy age 12. Who’s been diagnosed with type one spinal muscular as. We’ll hear how the lunch family has helped Lucy and about their hopes for the future in this special father’s network, dad to dad podcast say hello to host David Hirsch.
Hi,
David Hirsch: and thanks for listening to the dad to dad, podcast, fathers, mentoring, fathers of children with special. Presented by the special fathers network.
Tom Couch: This special father’s network is a dad to dad mentoring program for fathers raising children with special needs through our personalized matching process, new fathers with special needs children connect with mentor fathers in a similar situation.
It’s a great way for dads to support. To find out more, go to 21st century dads.org.
David Hirsch: And if your dad looking for help or would like to offer help, we’d be honored to have you join our closed Facebook group. Please go to facebook.com groups and search dad
Tom Couch: to death. And now let’s hear this conversation between Chad Lunt and David Hirsch.
David Hirsch: I’m thrilled to be talking today with Chad Lunt of Menlo park, California. Who’s the father of three vice president of consumer success at technologies, a high-profile IOT startup, the manufacturers, electro chromic windows, also known as smart class. Chad, thank you for taking the time to do a podcast interview for this special father’s network.
Pleasure. You and your wife. Shariece been married for 18 years and other proud parents of three children. 17 Jocelyn 15 and Lucy 12, who was diagnosed with type one spinal muscular atrophy or SMA. Let’s start with some background. Where did you grow up? Tell me something about your family.
Chad Lunt: I grew up reverse chronology at high school and junior high in Charleston, Illinois, about for ourselves Chicago, uh, four years and Arlington Mansfield, Texas, and then birth until then was temping Mesa, Arizona area.
And something about the family that I grew up in, uh, I’ll just share a wonderful memory that I think speaks to who they are. Uh, every year my father and mother would drive their eight children from Illinois or Texas to the Tempe Mesa area to be with family for two weeks. So the first week was rotating between aunts and uncles and cousins home.
And then the second week we always have. And the beach camping at lake Powell, which borders the Arizona Utah state line. And so, as you can imagine, the parents of eight, you have, you have babies in baby stages for many, many years and, and loving your children enough to take them in each camp for a week.
Uh, kind of speaks to their dedication, to our family and, and of the importance it is to them and us.
David Hirsch: Thanks for sharing. If I remember you’re the oldest of the eight, correct. So I imagine there was some additional responsibilities that were put on your shoulders. Maybe once you got your driver’s license and had to help getting your younger brothers and
Chad Lunt: sisters around.
So I have a twin sister who was younger than me, and I’ll say that she was more consistently responsible than I was, I think, but certainly, uh, I’ve tried to repent and cover my tracks a little bit. So, but yeah, certainly being the oldest. Some requirements.
David Hirsch: Excellent. So I’m sort of curious to know, uh, what did your dad do for a living?
And
Chad Lunt: so he started his career in public accounting. It was Deloitte and Haskins, and eventually went to work for a, a client is my understanding. Uh, he worked for tributaries of Colgate Palmolive for the Mo the one that, that I remember best as he worked for Hills. Uh, pet food products and then, and then a veterinarian software division.
And then from there as a, an operations executive for some manufacturing companies in Illinois.
David Hirsch: So is that the reason your family moved around a bit?
Chad Lunt: Yep. That’s right. Work opportunities. I remember distinctly having kind of family meetings where he discussed moving from Arizona to Texas and what that meant, especially as we were so close to family and.
From Texas to Illinois, less impactful, you know, because of, we had already kind of cut those apron strings, so to speak. So all important moves in our life.
David Hirsch: And is your dad’s toll life? What’s he doing
Chad Lunt: now? He is still alive. They moved to, uh, fruit Heights, Utah, a little bit north of salt lake, about four or five years ago.
They were in Illinois for 26 years. Something like that. And he does consulting management consulting for some of the, the owners of companies he’s worked for in the past. So, uh, most of those companies are portfolio companies are in the Midwest. And so he maintains his connections to Illinois and Indiana, and it keeps them busy.
David Hirsch: So I’m sort of curious to know, how would you characterize your relationship with your dad? He
Chad Lunt: is probably the single most important. And positive influence in my life. He was, you know, patient somehow had the ability to be patient when he needed to be patient and stern when he needed to be stern and, uh, has always been a huge supporter of me.
David Hirsch: Well, thanks for sharing. I’m wondering if there’s a story or two, or take away something that he did as a dad that you’ve tried to replicate as a dad, yourself. He
Chad Lunt: really involved us in the things that were important to you. So much, if not all of my dad’s non-work family time was spent as a volunteer ecclesiastical leader for our church, what that required or entailed for him, or what he offered was he would reach out to people and help them.
And as you would expect, the people that need the most help in an outreach often. Aren’t the people that live next to you. They are people who are, who have experienced challenges and heartache and, and difficulties that were frankly foreign to me, whether it was driving some of those people to, and from church on Sundays or visiting them during the week, or doing all kinds of tasks and requests, he involved us.
He let us know that and that’s how he let us know of the things that were important to him because he had us join.
David Hirsch: So from what I remember, you got your education at Brigham young and then MBA yet. Arizona state university. And I remember you telling me that your career began with sort of an infamous experience, um, as a young investment banking analyst with Lehman brothers and I used to work for sure of brothers back in the day.
So I’m, I’m very familiar with that story and said ending, you know, in the financial crisis. And I’m wondering, um, where your career took you from there.
Chad Lunt: It was an incredible, uh, institution in that you. So much and learned so much and frankly, walk got to interact with brilliant people. And so I really enjoyed that and all, you know, I will, I will say I was not the best analyst in my class, but I learned an incredible amount.
David Hirsch: So I’m sort of curious to know, how did you and your wife meet?
Chad Lunt: I all say in our demographic, which is. Kind of lifetime members of the church of Jesus Christ of latter day saints going to a church school. It was probably not that unique of a, a meeting. So we were in a social dance class together. So my only intention was to meet girls.
And, uh, anyway, we met on the first day and, and she was just kind of, I don’t know how to say it other than the brightest person that I’d ever interacted with. And, uh, it didn’t take long for me to decide. If it’s not her, it needs to be someone like her. And, uh, so anyway, we I’ll, I’ll save you the dancing puns, but, uh, we got to know each other better and better and, and, uh, started dating in probably late September, October of 2002, and were married April of 2003.
So relatively quickly then we had our first child. And February of 2004. So 10 months later, 11 months later, we had a beautiful baby boy.
David Hirsch: Yeah. Well, thanks for sharing. That’s fabulous. So let’s switch gears and talk about special needs. So what is type one, SMA, how was it diagnosed and what was your first reaction to learning about the situation?
Chad Lunt: First question of what it is. Your body produces a protein that controls a signaling from brain to muscles. And I believe it’s the SMN one gene, and you have to, everybody has to, and, and for most people, well, I don’t know the statistics on it, but sometimes only one works or is recreating the protein and no one will know.
And in her instance, neither work as they should. So she generates that protein. At a lower rate than it is lost in the body. And as a result, she is not able to control muscles and SMA type one means that they never reached the milestone of being able to sit up on their own power. There are other types of SMA 1, 2, 3, and each of them are really just progress milestones that the individual reaches.
Uh, how was it diagnosed? So we were noticing that she was unable to do baby push-ups if you know what I mean? So we’re there kind of lifting their head with their forearms to the ground and we would watch and do my wife would kind of give her Tony time and, and she just never was really lifting your head.
It was really frustrating for her. So we were, we were concerned about this and then I was doing some research. She said she was going to schedule. An appointment with the neurologist. And I said, well, please, please make sure they test for this. She said, well, I, you know, I hope it’s not that, but sure. We will.
About three weeks later, we were called in to meet in person with the neurologist and our pediatrician. And any time a doctor has to meet with you in person to review results, it’s not usually great news. So anyway, we were, we were told that. She has SMA type one and that there was no treatment, no cure.
And that we should take her home and love her. And she would likely live to about 18 months was kind of the life span at the time.
As you would
David Hirsch: expect, it sounds like it was like a very heavy situation. You already had two young kids. Right. Um, and you know, you’re coming up to speed on what the situation is with your third. It’s gotta suck the wind out of you. And I’m wondering if you could remember back those 12 years or so. What were your fears back then?
Um, in addition to the short life expectancy,
Chad Lunt: um, there was kind of an evolution of those fears. The first was all admit a little bit selfish. Like how, how is this going to affect me? How our family, what we can do together, my career, where you places we can live. And, and frankly, a little disappointed in myself, but that’s honest.
And then it changed to what does this mean for my wife and, you know, likely she’s going to, and, and she has played. The largest role in her care, how will this affect her? And, um, how will, you know, mortality effect, my young impressionable, tender children, other children, and, and really coming to terms with watching a child, your child, that you love, suffer, and knowing that additional suffering was coming.
Uh, that that was, that was heavy.
David Hirsch: Thank you for your authenticity. There’s these different stages of grief that people experience when they. Got overwhelming news or things happen in their lives. And each person process them a little bit differently. Some seem to speed through these various stages of grief, others linger.
They don’t all experience them in the same order or to the same magnitude. And it’s really, uh, enlightening to have you share where you were initially and then how that progressed to now your focus changed. So I really appreciate your authentic. Was there some meaningful advice that you got early on, whether it’s from doctors or other families that you might’ve met that had a child with SMA, but helped you and Shariece navigate the path that you’ve been on.
Chad Lunt: I’m considering meaningful advice as perspective driven device rather than tactical. And I can’t remember specific advice at, or around that time that you know, that, you know, it was just a huge lift as far as perspective. I will say that, uh, having children starting our family young and, you know, coping with this challenge, my familiarity with sacrifices that my ancestors and pretender progenitors have made for things that they felt were important was a strength for me in that I knew that people who had gone before me and that I was related to had done hard things and.
I had shown kind of grace and, and strengthen how they endured. And so that, that helped me kind of have faith in myself and know that I could do it. Not that would be easy, but that I, I believe that I could do it.
David Hirsch: What were some of the more important decisions that you made as parents raising a child with these a unique challenges?
Chad Lunt: Also the best decision I made unbeknownst to this future circumstance was to marry Sharif. She has a motor and then like a determination and positive attitude. You can meet anyone who knows her, will support what I’m saying and that she, she sets her mind to something and, and she does it. And whether it was accessing county or state resources or the best neurologist or, or SMA team treatments, you know, the ongoing day to day care when we didn’t have nursing for many, many years.
Just stoic. So I’ll say that was the best decision again, prior to this, and then watching her and trying my best to kind of keep up with work and other children and, you know, other uses of my time trying to have some balance and, and, you know, maintain your, your emotional and mental health. You know, she’s been inspiring to me and, and I don’t really have a good answer.
I don’t have like a, certainly no silver bullet trying to stay positive, trying to stay supportive would be my greatest recommendation. So.
David Hirsch: Well, thanks for sharing. And, um, uh, thanks for, uh, emphasizing the important role that Teresa’s played, uh, not only in your life, but your children’s lives, all of your children’s lives.
That’s, um, what’s really important and not to focus on the negative, but I’m wondering what some of the bigger challenges that you’ve encountered are.
Chad Lunt: So, you know, divorce rate in the country is high and growing. I think it’s over 50% at this time. And divorce rate among parents with special needs children.
My understanding is that it is higher and, and so well, so I’ll, uh, wax a little philosophical here. I believe that love requires two ingredients and those ingredients are time and service. If you spend enough time with someone and you serve someone enough, you will love them. What happens with a special needs child is that.
You don’t get to spend as much time or serve each other directly. I’ll say probably the single thing that led to the most, you know, marital strife was missing sleep because she is in a constant state of pulmonary or cardiopulmonary distress that she could at any moment, swallow her, spit down the wrong pipe and, and pass away.
And. She doesn’t have necessarily the vocals and certainly the mobility to protect her airway. And so she requires constant watch. And for many, many years, it was taking shifts at night, all through the night, you know, sleeping next to her pulse, IOL air quotes, sleeping next to her pulse, oximeter, listening to how the mat, you know, her, her BiPAP.
How she was breathing from from years one to four, she was in and out of the NICU at the hot, or pick you at the hospital constantly. And there were many times where, you know, coded and, and intubation and, and, you know, traumatic experiences. And so that was, that was hard, essentially carrying a child along the fence, along the top of the fence between the attorneys and life.
You know, emotionally taxing, physically taxing, and I guess, taxing to a relationship.
David Hirsch: One of the things I heard you refer to is what I think about is the hypervigilance that you have to maintain 24 7. And you know, you don’t want to take your eye off the ball. Um, because something had happened in a split second and, you know, change the course of things.
That must take a lot of energy. Right? Take a lot of focus.
Chad Lunt: It’s really difficult to explain, or I almost feel like it’s not something you can teach or, or, or share with someone. It be that perspective can, and this isn’t meant to come across in an arrogant way or whatever, but it’s a perspective that can only be.
Kind of earned or experienced. And, and I’ll say that my perspective is less than my wife, my wife’s in that way and that she has invested more, but yeah, there’s, you know, the, the, the fear of failure is just incredible.
David Hirsch: Was there a turning point in the experience that you can reflect back on now?
Chad Lunt: I will say that throughout the whole thing.
There has been, I’ll call it an undeserved or, or palpable piece that, uh, has allowed us to find some reduction to anxiety or stress or challenge. Certainly when she was able to vocalize once she could speak. And even what you know, it’s N when I say speak, she has an accent, as you would expect. Um, but she can speak.
And that’s that changed things, which when she could finally start communicating what her needs were and even a simple way, I mean, lots of SMA type one, children don’t have the ability to speak. And so these parents, these amazing parents are perceiving eye twitches and eyebrow raises and tongue movements.
And that’s how they know what that child needs. So we’re fortunate that Lucy can speak, but once we can start understanding and have a routine and methods to address kind of more stressful or, um, dangerous situations that made just a huge difference. And I think that was around, that was somewhere between four and six years old when it kind of started jelling.
And we started understanding, okay, this is, this is important and this is not. No, this is the routine. And so that made a big difference. So our, our middle child, our daughter, um, is very responsible and at some level we started figuring out how to get nursing. And so, you know, we, we would sleep, you know, we’d have the chance to get a full night’s rest, you know, start that started happening consistently a couple of nights a week.
And now pretty consistently in that that’s made the world of difference, but I mean, I think anybody in any situation that is sleep deprived will tell you that made a big difference.
David Hirsch: Well, thanks for sharing. I’m sorta curious to know, when did the Spinraza treatment come into play or the decision to pursue that and how has that changed things?
Chad Lunt: I believe it’s been three or four years. So when she was. We heard about this treatment and you know, it was in trials at Stanford. We live about a mile from Stanford or mile and a half, and we were excited about it and there, it was difficult, too difficult to gain access to it. So my wife, you know, I give credit to found a neurologist in Fresno that.
Provide the treatment. So the treatment is given intrathecally, so it’s a spinal tap and requires lots of other supporting I’ll call it medical staff. And so he would do it with essentially a mild sedative and then a syringe anyway. So that’s what gave her access to it initially. So we would drive to Fresno and angel, the man would, you know, who’s at the Twilight of his career.
You know, as a neurologist, I’m sure up to that point, it was probably pretty frustrating. And that you could diagnose, you couldn’t treat because it’s so difficult. Anyway, long story short, that’s how we first started and we’ve since transferred to Stanford and, and, uh, so it’s only a mile and a half away and Lucy can absolutely tell or feel the difference between doses and, and, uh, it has prevented the D disease from progressing further.
And, and I would say there has even been. You know, arguably some increased functionality and relief from the disease.
David Hirsch: Yeah. Well, I know it’s expensive, but I’ve also heard it referred to as a miracle drug. And I don’t know if you would agree with that,
Chad Lunt: but to me it’s magic. Like how do you put a chemical in somebody’s spinal fluid?
And then it makes a chromosome work a little bit better or some RNA, like I it’s magic to me. So I won’t pretend to understand the science.
David Hirsch: I’m sort of curious to know what, uh, impact Lucy situations had on her older siblings or the rest of your family for that matter.
Chad Lunt: Sure. So being somewhat self-aware, I am the kind of parent that unfortunately that wants to remove difficulty from my children. If there’s discomfort or, or, or an experience I want them to have, I’ll usually make sacrifices and do what I need to do to remove that friction or diversity.
And, and, and frankly, I wish I wasn’t that way. And I am, but it, but friction and adversity is required for strong character and the kind of children that I want, even though I’m not following them the equation. So Lucy has been a. Source of training and teaching empathy of providing service and meaningful and heartfelt ways with, you know, only the return of a good feeling or a thank you for mom and dad at best.
And so she has taught a humanity and mortality and humility in a way that we could never have otherwise taught our children. So as a person of faith, She has done more for us as a family and for her brothers and sisters to crystallize and develop their faith than I could have otherwise done by myself.
And I attribute, uh, the goodness that I see, I attribute someone or you don’t a lot of the goodness that I see. And, and frankly, myself and my two older children to having to live in around and near her and serve.
David Hirsch: That’s fabulous. Thanks for sharing. Um, have there been any supporting organizations that you, your family have relied on either directly or indirectly for Lucy or your family’s benefit?
Chad Lunt: I would say camaraderie and, and, and feeling like you’re supporting this network of people that was provided to us through the Gwendolyn strong foundation. So, uh, she is a. She is a young woman who is a little bit older with the same condition as Lucy that passed a few years ago. And her parents were very positive and, and inspiring people in the community.
And we’re honored and happy to be, to contribute to that organization in any way that we can. Certainly, you know, as, as you would expect, family contributed in meaningful ways, trying to provide support and help. Through our church community and then cure SMA was another organization that, that we affiliated with.
Yeah. I, I I’m sure that I missed someone that I owe a significant amount of gratitude towards, but those are common. Those are the ones that come to mind that, that are affiliated with,
David Hirsch: I think in the past conversation, you also mentioned that you have a great school district. Oh
Chad Lunt: yeah. So thank you. So the Menlo park school district, I can almost not comprehend.
The level of sacrifice and dedication and focus and above and beyond that many of these inclusion specialists and therapists and nurses and others, it’s been, it’s definitely been a team effort. And, and these amazing people have, you know, done more than just their job. They’ve kind of loved and served, uh, Lucy.
So thank you for mining.
David Hirsch: Yeah, well, um, nobody gets there by themselves. And, uh, thank you for acknowledging that, uh, you know, there’s been other players beyond your family that have played an important role. Um, you’ve made reference to your spirituality almost from the beginning of our conversation. So I, maybe I don’t need to ask the question, but I’m wondering what role spirituality has played in your lives.
Chad Lunt: I think that one of the greatest benefits of fake. With it, which is, uh, uh, you know, by itself, a belief in something is hope. And the hope that has come from my faith and belief in, uh, Jesus Christ and his efforts and sacrifice and teachings has given me peace and direction. And. I would say has allowed some of my belief to, to progress from faith to knowledge that I have done.
I have done it long enough and testing it sufficiently that I know that by doing certain things, I can find relief and additional hope. Yeah. And that my children can find greater peace and, um, protection. So I know that that’s maybe a little bit, uh, direct and perhaps are arguable for some people, but for me, I’ve had, I feel enough life experience to say that, um, there are certain things I know at this point.
And, and, and one of those things being the hope has carried me. And so the hope that comes from my faith is, is critical to me.
David Hirsch: Well, thanks for sharing. I’m thinking about advice now, and I’m wondering beyond. Well, we’ve already discussed. If there’s any advice you can provide a dad who has a child with special needs, maybe a younger child with special needs.
Chad Lunt: I think that if I were to give advice, it would be, and maybe it’s easier said than done, but try and find the joy of the struggle. I know that it’s easy to find joy and, and perhaps distraction and entertainment. You know, another fishing trip or hunting trip or, and I love those things. I want to do them as much as I possibly can, water skiing, anything, right?
Those fun things, but to find the satisfaction and the joy from the support and care, you can try your best to give to your wife. Oh, in some instances, your partner, your, your, or your child, uh, finding the joy and satisfaction that comes from a incredibly challenging struggle. Uh, I don’t, I think people find it different ways, but, uh, that would be my, my suggestion is, is that you’re going to miss out on fun and you’re going to miss out on, on some of the things that you see your friends and family experiencing because of this sweet person that’s in your life.
But if you can see the try and see the good and find the good that’s coming into your family’s life from that experience and that, that work, that struggle. It’s helped me be happier. And again, I just sympathize with, with those fathers and mothers who, who are dealing with that. And certainly don’t pretend that my situation is harder or easier, I would say in some cases easier than, than some of them, but I would encourage them to somehow find that place where the struggle and sacrifice and missed experiences enjoy are celebrated in them in some kind of.
David Hirsch: Yeah, that’s an important site. I’ve heard it referred to as that at some level, that there’s a purpose in the pain and that, uh, you, you can only see that when you look backwards right. And connect some of the dots. Very difficult to look forward and try to connect those dots. So I think it’s with the wisdom, the understanding, the experience that you referenced, that maybe you can find some of the joy that you were referring to.
So thanks again for sharing. So I’m sort of curious to know why is it that you’ve agreed to be a mentor father as part of the special father’s
Chad Lunt: network. So much of the burden and requirement and pressure to, to raise. Good citizens and good humans and, and good people rests on women’s shoulders. And some of that is some of that is societal norms, which need to, I think, adjust to allow men and, and requirement to contribute more equally.
Uh, but some of it is from what I’ve observed, pure capability, whether it’s determination and resilience. Or patients and nurturing women have just this incredible responsibility. And I think that the more men who can provide a positive example of the things you identified at the beginning of the call, work ethic, um, morality and, and being, having moral integrity, whatever you believe is right.
You, you stick to that. And, uh, the more we can involve men in. Being examples and being an equal support to the next generation, the better it will be for those that next generation and, and the better it will be for women in the sense that at a minimum men will be more empathetic and sympathetic to what, you know, the, the way they feel.
And so that’s part of my, why I want to be involved with something like this.
David Hirsch: Well, thank you. We’re thrilled to have you. Thanks for being involved. Let’s give a special shout out to Kim nigh of the test research foundation for helping connect us. No, absolutely. Is there anything else you’d like to say before we wrap
Chad Lunt: up?
No, I enjoyed the conversation and appreciate your patience in dealing with some of the emotion that sometimes comes to the top. So
David Hirsch: well, it’s very authentic. Thanks. Somebody wants to learn more about the test research foundation, the Gwendolyn strong foundation, the cure us may Facebook group, or just to contact you.
What’s the best way about going to do that?
Chad Lunt: Certainly I can include my email in the comments or notes of, of this podcast. I think that if you are interested in learning more about my family or, or, or us, my wife does a wonderful job of kind of documenting. Lucy and, and the things that we do her Instagram account is C H E R T as in Tom, L U N as in Nancy, T as in Tom.
So share tea lunch. She does a great job of trying to kind of highlight and share the positive things that come from this experience and happy too, to try and be encouraging and positive to anyone that would want to reach out to me. So
David Hirsch: we’ll be sure to include your email. Theresa is Instagram account in the show notes.
So it’ll make it as easy as possible for people to follow up. Chad, thank you for your time. And many insights. As a reminder, Chad is just one of the dads. Who’s part of the special fathers network, a mentoring program for fathers raising a child with special needs. If you’d like to be a mentor father or are seeking advice from a mentor father with a similar situation to your own, please go to 21st century dads.org.
Thank you for listening to the latest episode of the special father’s network data dad podcast. I hope you enjoy the conversation as much as I did, as you probably know. The 21st century dads foundation is a 5 0 1 C3, not for profit organization, which means we need your help to keep our content free, to all concerned.
Would you please consider making a tax deductible contribution? I would really appreciate your support, Chad. Thanks again.
Tom Couch: And thank you for listening to the dad to dad podcast presented by the special fathers network. The special father’s network is a dad to dad mentoring program for fathers raising children with special needs through our personalized matching process.
New fathers with special needs children connect with mentor fathers in a similar situation. It’s a great way for fathers to support fathers, go to 21st century dads.org. That’s 21 St. Century dads.org.
David Hirsch: And if you’re a dad looking for help or we’d like to offer help, we would be honored to have you join our closed Facebook group.
Please go to facebook.com groups and search dad to dad also, please be sure to register for the special. Biweekly zoom calls held on the first and third Tuesdays of every month. Lastly, we’re always looking to share interesting stories. If you’d like to share your story or know of a compelling story, please send an email to David.
At 21st century dads.org.
Tom Couch: Dad podcast was produced by couch audio for the special father’s network. Thanks again to horizon therapeutics who believe that science and compassion must work together to transform lives. That’s why they work tirelessly to research, develop and bring forward medicines for people living with rare and rheumatic diseases.
Discover more about horizon therapeutics at horizontherapeutics.com.