LilMtnCbn
02-03-2005, 04:56 AM
http://www.kansas.com/mld/eagle/living/education/10799636.htm
Aaron's long road to graduation
Aaron Miller's adoptive parents spent years helping him learn the simplest
things in life. Last week, they watched him get his diploma.
BY JOE RODRIGUEZ
The Wichita Eagle
For Aaron Z. Miller, the last 14 years have been marked by milestones. As a
child, he suffered physical and emotional abuse that left him legally blind,
autistic, mentally challenged and with a seizure disorder.
So it was a milestone when his adoptive parents watched him walk for the first
time after they adopted him at age 7. He had never learned.
It was a milestone for him to go to the bathroom on his own. He didn't know
how.
It was a milestone for him to accept a hug from his adoptive parents. He had
been too afraid that people who got close to him were going to hit him.
"Oh, God, you'll never know how good it felt," his adoptive mother, Sharon
Miller, recalled of that first hug.
The latest milestone for Aaron, now 21, came last week when he received his
Wichita high school diploma from Chisholm Life Skills Center. The special
education center awards diplomas based on its students' abilities. Its goal is
to help students become more independent.
Through the Chisholm program, Aaron began working five years ago at Envision, a
nonprofit organization that provides services for people who are blind or have
low vision. He will continue to work at Envision, where his duties include
putting pens into boxes.
Seeing Aaron receive his diploma was a thrill for his parents, who adopted him
after Aaron was removed from the home of his biological parents.
"The thrill for me is Aaron -- to know that he has overcome so much in his
life," Sharon Miller said.
Aaron was born healthy, but was left blinded after he suffered blows to his
head when he was 2 months old, Sharon Miller said. More abuse followed for the
next seven years, resulting in the other conditions.
After the Millers adopted Aaron, they did something his biological parents did
not -- they gave him a middle name, Zane. Sharon Miller said a lack of a middle
name was another kind of neglect.
At first, Aaron wouldn't let anyone get close to him, not even for a hug. He
was too fearful, the Millers said, that someone would beat him.
Over time, the trust grew stronger between parents and son.
Just days before getting his diploma, Aaron sat on a couch and rested his head
against his mother's stomach. He reached out, grabbed his mother's hand and
slipped his fingers between hers. Later, he lay on the couch behind his father,
reached around and stroked his arm.
"I think it is an accomplishment seeing what he was when we got him," Ed Miller
said, "and where he is now."
Now, he is a young man who sings tunes to commercials.
He's a young man who walks slowly, but walks on his own.
He's a young man with a job.
And a high school diploma.
"I think he's definitely an inspiration to other people," said Darla Wallin,
manager of vocational services at Envision. "And I think it's also a great
example of how people can overcome difficult times in their lives. They don't
get much more difficult than what Aaron's been through."
-------------------------
A good friend will come and bail you out of jail . . . but, a true friend will
be sitting next to you saying, "Damn . . . that was fun!"
-----Unknown
Aaron's long road to graduation
Aaron Miller's adoptive parents spent years helping him learn the simplest
things in life. Last week, they watched him get his diploma.
BY JOE RODRIGUEZ
The Wichita Eagle
For Aaron Z. Miller, the last 14 years have been marked by milestones. As a
child, he suffered physical and emotional abuse that left him legally blind,
autistic, mentally challenged and with a seizure disorder.
So it was a milestone when his adoptive parents watched him walk for the first
time after they adopted him at age 7. He had never learned.
It was a milestone for him to go to the bathroom on his own. He didn't know
how.
It was a milestone for him to accept a hug from his adoptive parents. He had
been too afraid that people who got close to him were going to hit him.
"Oh, God, you'll never know how good it felt," his adoptive mother, Sharon
Miller, recalled of that first hug.
The latest milestone for Aaron, now 21, came last week when he received his
Wichita high school diploma from Chisholm Life Skills Center. The special
education center awards diplomas based on its students' abilities. Its goal is
to help students become more independent.
Through the Chisholm program, Aaron began working five years ago at Envision, a
nonprofit organization that provides services for people who are blind or have
low vision. He will continue to work at Envision, where his duties include
putting pens into boxes.
Seeing Aaron receive his diploma was a thrill for his parents, who adopted him
after Aaron was removed from the home of his biological parents.
"The thrill for me is Aaron -- to know that he has overcome so much in his
life," Sharon Miller said.
Aaron was born healthy, but was left blinded after he suffered blows to his
head when he was 2 months old, Sharon Miller said. More abuse followed for the
next seven years, resulting in the other conditions.
After the Millers adopted Aaron, they did something his biological parents did
not -- they gave him a middle name, Zane. Sharon Miller said a lack of a middle
name was another kind of neglect.
At first, Aaron wouldn't let anyone get close to him, not even for a hug. He
was too fearful, the Millers said, that someone would beat him.
Over time, the trust grew stronger between parents and son.
Just days before getting his diploma, Aaron sat on a couch and rested his head
against his mother's stomach. He reached out, grabbed his mother's hand and
slipped his fingers between hers. Later, he lay on the couch behind his father,
reached around and stroked his arm.
"I think it is an accomplishment seeing what he was when we got him," Ed Miller
said, "and where he is now."
Now, he is a young man who sings tunes to commercials.
He's a young man who walks slowly, but walks on his own.
He's a young man with a job.
And a high school diploma.
"I think he's definitely an inspiration to other people," said Darla Wallin,
manager of vocational services at Envision. "And I think it's also a great
example of how people can overcome difficult times in their lives. They don't
get much more difficult than what Aaron's been through."
-------------------------
A good friend will come and bail you out of jail . . . but, a true friend will
be sitting next to you saying, "Damn . . . that was fun!"
-----Unknown
