Traci, David, and their three sons could use your encouragement this Valentine's Day! Share the love and hope of Christ with this special needs family as part of the Heart for the Disabled campaign.
Send your notes to David and Traci at Joni and Friends, PO Box 3333, Agoura Hills, CA 91376. See their photo at joniradio.org.
Hi, I’m Joni Eareckson Tada, and welcome to Heart for the Disabled week!
Thanks so much for joining me as we begin my favorite campaign of the year. It’s when I ask you to take a few minutes to write a note of encouragement to special needs families who’ve attended Joni and Friends Family Retreats. Now many of you have done this before, and once again, the response last year – we couldn’t believe it! You guys just keep breaking records. And all of it means the world to these families struggling with disabilities. Because of you, they receive Valentine cards, letters, notes with Bible verses, words of hymns, articles, inspirational poems. So I’d like to start the week telling you about David and Traci’s story.
David and Traci have three sons: Derek, Tyler, and Evan, their youngest, who has a rare chromosomal abnormality. It’s resulted in cerebral palsy and has left him blind, hearing impaired, and non-verbal. Evan uses a wheelchair and struggles with lots of seizures. He must be tube-fed 18-hours-a-day and needs constant care. For a long time, David and Traci were an amazing caregiving team managing their son’s day-to-day routines as well as tending to their other two boys.
Then, the unthinkable happened. You see, David owns his own roofing company, and three years ago he fell two stories off of a roof and landed directly on his head. No one thought David would survive but miraculously, he did. Sadly, though, he now lives with a significant, life-altering brain injury. So you can imagine how devastating this was for his wife, Traci.
She was forced to become the family’s main breadwinner. She works 10 to 12-hour shifts as a nurse at a local hospital, and as soon as she comes home, she’s on duty to care for David and their disabled son, Evan. I’m so grateful that the older boys, Derek and Tyler, selflessly have stepped to the plate to care for their brother and their father. Still though, Traci’s letter to us broke my heart. She said, “Joni, we’re still grieving. Grieving the loss of dad, husband, and the life we once had.” David’s traumatic brain injury is tough to handle. His TBI makes him frustrated, emotional, and there are frequent outbursts of anger – none of which he has control over. Traci continues; she says, “We know this is not him, but it has been very difficult for the boys and me to separate those feelings when someone you love so much is hurting you.”
Oh, dear. Traci has traveled through incredibly dark days, but her faith has not wavered. Even when everyone in their family got COVID, Traci remained firm in her hope in Christ. And so, friend, you’d agree that this woman could use a few uplifting words, right? So here’s what you can do: Come alongside this exceptional family by writing them a note or a letter. They’ve experienced so much loss, but you can help strengthen them with your card, poem, Bible verses, a handwritten prayer, a gift card. Send Traci and her family your encouragement to Joni and Friends, PO Box 3333, Agoura Hills, CA 91376. And if you miss any details, I’ve posted them all at joniradio.org along with photos of this beautiful family. Remember to send your encouragement soon so it will arrive in Traci’s mailbox in time for Valentine’s Day. Again, thanks for having a heart for the disabled, and please tell your friends to tune in tomorrow for another Heart for the Disabled story that will really touch your heart.
© Joni and Friends