A Proud Mom Shares Her Daughter’s Journey

Thank you to mom Anne Yap for sharing her daughter Maurine’s story of growth and independence with Jubilee’s Champions of Inclusions. We are proud to be part of her story.

As told by Anne Yap*

Inclusion has been at the forefront of our daughter Maurine’s life since the moment she was born. Maurine is a triplet. From day one, the Yap triplets have been on the go together.

The triplets were born in Norway due to my husband Dean’s job in the Foreign Service. We met abroad as I was on my own personal journey teaching internationally.

We were young parents —far from home— and trying to deal with three babies, one of whom had special needs. You can imagine it wasn’t the easiest time in our lives.

One day, the phone rings. It’s the Foreign Service on the line. They suggested my husband consider quitting his career because Maurine might just make it all too hard.

As we sat there overwhelmed and trying to figure out our future, a champion entered Maurine’s life.

Janet McGhee was a Foreign Service officer. The State Department had connected us. Janet was also mom to a little girl named Sarah who has Down syndrome. On a long-distance phone call from Germany to Oslo, Janet said, “You’re a family with triplets? You’re a special ed teacher? Who better to represent our country?!!”  With that encouragement, we stayed in the Foreign Service and forged a beautiful life with years both abroad and here in Montgomery County.

Of course, childhood can’t last forever. We always imagined Maurine would be able to live independently. Putting that goal into reality involved years of working diligently on life skills, classes, and a job, until Maurine felt she was ready to set out on her own.

Maurine was excited. Just like her siblings Margaret and Nicholas, she would fly from the family nest.

Unfortunately, despite all the work Maurine had put into preparing for her big move to her own apartment, we experienced a setback. Life, as it likes to do, did not go as planned.

Our high hopes were dashed when Maurine did not get the support she needed from the agency we initially worked with. Maurine’s faith in herself and her ability to live independently were shaken. It was a sad time for Maurine. And for us. We didn’t know what the future would hold.

Once again, champions entered Maurine’s life. We started to hear from other parents of young adults with disabilities about Jubilee. As we learned more about Jubilee, we were excited to dream about how this could change Maurine’s life. Jubilee’s core values, centered on the idea that all people are created in G-d’s image and that all people are empowered, spoke to us.  From our first meetings with Jubilee, we knew that this organization would help Maurine forge a future that would allow her to be independent and be included in the community.

And suddenly, here we are. This past month marked a year since Maurine has lived in her forever home with her absolutely amazing Jubilee aide for personal support, Shauna Miller. With Shauna’s support and encouragement, Maurine is again blossoming.

Maurine has a job she loves as a teacher’s aide in a preschool. She commutes there on her own using public transportation. She’s made friends with neighbors, and hosted hangouts at her own apartment. She’s making healthy eating choices, and she looks great! I could keep listing accomplishments like the proud mom I am, but instead I’m going to share a story with you. It speaks volumes about how Maurine is thriving with Jubilee’s support.

Every summer our extended family vacations on a remote island in Upper Michigan. It’s a place filled with special memories for our family. One of those memories is the annual lake swim. It’s always been a little too long, a little too cold, and a little too deep for Maurine to join me in the swim.

Enter Shauna. Maurine shared with her she wanted to swim across the lake too.  Together, they set goals to achieve what hadn’t been possible before. They practiced three times a week at a local Y to build confidence and stamina.

Well, on Maurine’s 25th trip with our family to the lake, she and I swam back and forth across it three times! That moment meant so much to me as a mom. 

With the right support, Maurine could do what she set out to do. Today, she can swim 100 pool lengths in one workout.

I can’t wait to see what else she’ll accomplish!

*Excerpted speech