LDI offered our adult daughter the potential to reach her personal goal: to live independently by the age of 26. We all believed LDI was a match from our initial visit when we realized that each one of the staff spoke to her first, and then continued to speak to her respectfully. In most of our experiences, people have spoken to us and referred to our daughter in the third person during conversations, as if she were invisible.
 
Our daughter is intelligent, kind, and focused. LDI has given her the space, respect, tools, support, and structure to succeed in her LDI classes, her service-learning work, and her academic studies at the community college. Personally, the LDI extended services offer her breathing space to find success in budgeting, life skills, professional development, and social skills. Most importantly for her: because of the extended services, Erin can grow at her own pace without worry that if she still needs more time to grow into her goodness and independence upon graduation from LDI, she can still stay connected and supported by staff who know her strengths, concerns, and skills.
 
Prior to her enrollment into LDI, our shy daughter struggled socially with peers, because she rarely initiated conversations or knew how to maintain them. Everyone notices and comments how she initiates and carries conversations now. All three of us attribute that to her new-found confidence, hope, and skill. Though we miss her, we celebrate that our daughter is finally living the life she knew she could,