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Elizabeth Curtin Description of Contact

2/27/11

Family Mentor Journal 1

This past weekend, I was able to make the initial face-to-face contact with my mentor family. I spent 3 hours and 45 minutes with them on Saturday night at the Champaign Public Library, as well as their home in Champaign, IL. This family has a 5th grade daughter with Down Syndrome, CT. During our meeting, the mother, father, and two other siblings were there. CT has an older sister who is 15th months older than her. She also has a nine year old brother. Thus far, I have spent 3 hours and 45 minutes of face-to-face contact and was also able to exchange about 20 minutes worth of text messages, too. Personal Perceptions and Feelings Overall, I have thoroughly enjoyed my contact with my mentor family. The perceptions of my family were positive before I spent any time with them. During Thursday night classes, I have been able to hear multiple family members speak and it seemed as though the family was very close. Each of the family members had a positive attitude during the various panels, and I was definitely able to see this during my night with them. At the library, I was able to observe positive interactions between CT and her mom. The two of them were looking through movies together and having constant, light-hearted conversations. Throughout the night, these positive and uplifting perceptions continued. The family appeared to be extremely close-knit, and I was able to observe much affection and love between the parents, children, and siblings. During dinner, the family was joking with one another. As well, I did not observe any bickering or fighting between the siblings. Rather, the siblings seemed to play with one another, support one another, and talk as though they were friends. Specifically, I was able to see high levels of affection between CT and her family members. CT seems to be an extremely friendly and loving child, so the family frequently expressed their love towards her.

Elizabeth Curtin

2/27/11

Family Mentor Journal 1

Observing these positive interactions gave me positive perceptions and feelings about CT and her family. I felt extremely welcomed into the warm environment of their home on Saturday night. I was so happy to see CT interacting consistently with her siblings, and it was exciting to see the support her siblings provided to her. The family and I also played a few board games, and I was pleased at the cooperation I observed. I felt extremely natural spending time with the family, and the games and conversations we had were very interactive. Also, CTs mom showed me each of the childrens baby books. Seeing the family pictures of all of the children once again instilled the familys sense of love and commitment to one another. This family very obviously loves one another, and being able to experience this through these observations made me feel happy, thankful, and excited for CTs future. Guiding Questions 1. How is your own family similar to your Family Mentor family and how is your own family different from your Family Mentor family? There are a few similarities and differences between my own family and my Family Mentor family. On a literal level, the socioeconomic status of my own family and CTs family seems to be similar. Both families appear to be in the middle to upper class. Secondly, both my own family and CTs family are extremely affectionate. Both of the families express affection between one another, and also display high levels of cohesiveness, specifically within the home. Through my observations, I was able to see the closeness of CTs family, and it reminded me of the time I spend with my own family at home. Finally, both CTs parents as well as my own parents act as advocates for their children. My own mother and father have advocated for my brother and I throughout our lives in school, at home, and in the community in various ways. CTs mother and father

Elizabeth Curtin

2/27/11

Family Mentor Journal 1

have also consistently advocated for their childrens, specifically CTs, needs at school. For example, CTs parents have worked closely with her school to get CT a full-day aide. While CTs parents have had to advocate more actively for CTs school services, both parents (CTs and my own) have acted as advocates for their children. On the other hand, there are some differences between my family and CTs family. First, CTs family is slightly bigger with three children (rather than the two children of my family). The children are also closer in age than me and my brother which promotes a closer relationship between siblings. As well, CTs siblings both attend private school, and their family seems to be a little more spiritual. CTs father is currently converting to Catholicism, and the rest of the family seems to highly value religion. My own family does value religion, but on a smaller level. Finally, CTs family appears to do more recreation activities together. While my family rarely does community and recreation activities or outings together, I was able to see CTs familys involvement in the community through pictures and home videos. 2. How is culture reflected in your Family Mentor family? Through home videos, observations, and pictures, I was able to infer various cultural values of my Family Mentor family. CTs family seems to highly value both immediate and extended family. When looking through pictures, CT and her siblings got quite excited when talking about their aunts, uncles, and cousins. This exemplifies the large role the extended family seems to play in the familys life. As well, spirituality seems to be of importance to CTs family. As stated above, CTs siblings attend Catholic schools, CTs mom teaches at a Catholic school, and CTs dad is currently converting to Catholicism. Overall, CTs family seems to value the individual, but also stresses the importance of the family unit as a whole. While CTs parents want their children to be

Elizabeth Curtin

2/27/11

Family Mentor Journal 1

individuals and reach their own goals and dreams, their family unit seems to be of upmost importance. Also, through talking with CTs mother, I concluded that human equality seems to be stressed. On a small scale, each member of CTs family seems to be treated equally. Within the bigger picture, too, CTs parents fight and advocate for her to be treated equally to her peers. Overall, my Family Mentor family seems to stress the importance of affection, closeness, family, spirituality, and equality. Through these ideals and values, this family has developed into a successful, loving, and inspiring family unit.

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