Editor

I am writing this letter to thank those in the community for their support and care for our family in our time of need. This is our story.

My name is Sharon Gibson, a.k.a. Sharon Smoyer.

I am a single parent of two children, Amanda Smoyer, 12, and James Smoyer, 5.

In October of 2006, my son James was diagnosed with minimal change disease. In English, this is when a small change in the body causes the kidneys to try to shut down.

He was hospitalized and began his treatment, which lasted a several months. He is now done with the treatment and doing much better. During this time my daughter Amanda broke her ankle playing football and then broke her wrist skating.

It was a trying time for the whole family. Without the help from the people off the community we would not have been able to get through this and I would like to take this opportunity to thank those people.

The Ford Academy staff treated James as if he were their own child. The medicine that he was on caused him to be very hyper and they hung in there like only someone who loved the spirit of a child could.

I want families to know that I waited a long time for what I feel is the most qualified and properly structured childcare center to come to this area.

They really took care of my son which allowed me to focus on getting the things that we needed and being able to keep my job.

Through this time I worked at the Gardner Law Firm.

The attorneys and staff were very supportive of our situation, covering for me while I was out as well as continuing to keep my position available for me to return. I can’t thank you all enough for your understanding through this time.

South Coast Pediatric Group handled the care of both children. They did an awesome job. Me not knowing anything about this condition left the doors open to a lot of fear, feelings of helplessness and many questions. Do you know that all of the doctors that practice with this group in Richmond Hill took the time to find the answers to all of my questions.

Dr. Seibert would call to check on James and make sure that I understood that even though his aftercare would primarily be at home he was still there monitoring and following every step. The true caring of these doctors and nurses was so reassuring that we would get through this. They never made me feel like I was asking too many questions or that they did not have the time for me. That is truly "God Sent" to a mother.

Last but not least I would like thank my friends and family for being there.Things would change drastically from day to day for us and my family showed a lot of flexibility and support through these changes.

From our family to yours, thank you and God Bless!