Our Founder
I never thought getting pregnant with my second child would be any different than my first child. My first son, Charlie, was born in 2001. He was a terrible sleeper, very busy, and the love of our lives since the first day we met him that July afternoon. His little brother Ryan was born just over 2 years later. That cool October day was also one of the best days of our lives. But our life as we knew it, or prayed for it to be, would be nothing like my husband Mike and I ever expected.
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Ryan has autism. He is non-verbal. He has global developmental delays and seizures due to epilepsy. He will never live independently. The simple hopes that my husband and I took for granted like expecting our kids to go to school, learn the basics, go to college, get a job, get married…. Not going to happen. But that’s okay. God’s plan for Ryan looks different. We accept that, embrace that, and now let’s get moving making the best of it. The Bible says Ry is “fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139;14) We all are. We all have purpose, and Ry is no different.
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Raising a special needs child is as up and down emotionally as you can get. It’s very hard on a family. When Ryan was very young and we were unsure of his disabilities, you would find me researching all the best doctors and therapies and trying everything to give him the best life. Flying to New York and Texas to meet with doctors who say they have had miraculous changes in the kids they see, if only you take the supplements they suggest, or do the diet they recommend. Well, we did everything. Ry was on a gluten-free, soy-free, casein-free, milk-free diet for 7 years. No change. We did 80 hours of hyperbaric oxygen therapy. No change. We gave him b12 shots; did music therapy; ABA therapy; OT; PT; angel readers; had him blessed by a Pastor who said he had healing qualities; supplements, supplements and more supplements. No change.
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It was when Ryan went to kindergarten that we stopped the madness and accepted. God doesn’t make mistakes. Ryan is who he is supposed to be. We didn’t stop therapies and new ideas that people gave us, but we started to accept. We accepted at different times as a family. Thankfully we trusted in God to get us through, and He held us together when times were the hardest. Some days are easier and some days excruciating. How did this happen? Is it something I ate? Something I did? I have begged God, on my knees, so many times to PLEASE step in.
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God stepped in, but just not how I wanted Him to at the time. He gave me the best doctors to give us the right medicines that would control Ryan’s behavior and seizures. He gave me the best family and friendship groups that support Ryan and our family beyond words. I think God made me to be Ryan’s mom, because not only can I handle it, but I can also make the best of it. I can do good by it with God’s grace and make Ryan’s life purposeful and intentional. He doesn’t have a voice, but God didn’t skimp in that department with me.
Some days are tough and long in that the older Ryan gets, the less seems to interest him. It’s a lot of sitting around, with not much going on besides Blues Clues, Paw Patrol and Baby Einstein. Repeat. Car rides, car rides and more car rides. Repeat. But we can make that downtime into something good for others. God put a little oompf in my step one day to say to this world “You’re not taking my joy!” Ryan’s life, despite his disabilities, CAN have purpose. Ryan’s purpose. Because of him, we are going to SEE others like him and bless them. Matthew 25:40 “The king will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for the least of these brothers and sister of mine, you did for me.”
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My idea of starting Ry’s and Shine started in 2023. I met with Ryan’s social worker who gave me the best advice when I asked for her wisdom in starting a non-profit for adults with disabilities. She said, “Jill, you get an idea and all you have to do is move your feet. At your speed, just move your feet. One step at a time, that’s how things start.” So, I moved my feet in December of 2024 and launched Ry’s & Shine.