Palin raises hope for parents of disabled kids
By SHANNON McCAFFREY
Associated Press
September 8, 2008
ALPHARETTA, Ga. (AP) -- Polishing off his strawberry-banana yogurt, Jacob Moore races to his keyboard with a whoop, picks his way through "Pop Goes the Weasel" and gives his mom a high five. This is the average stuff of childhood, and it has not come easily to the 8-year-old with Down syndrome.
For his mother, Heidi Moore, achieving average "is like climbing Mount Everest." The family has been clambering up with the help of therapists, 15 surgeries, prayer and a tight-knit community of parents whose children live with the disorder.
That network is abuzz with Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's arrival on the national scene as Republican presidential candidate John McCain's running mate. A little more than four months ago, Palin, 44, gave birth to a son, Trig, with the extra chromosome that causes Down syndrome.
Palin hoisted the sleepy-looking infant into her arms after delivering the biggest speech of her career before cheering delegates at the Republican convention and a television audience of 40 million.
In her address, she had a special message for families with special-needs children: "I pledge to you that if we are elected, you will have a friend and advocate in the White House."
It was an electrifying moment for those parents and their advocates.
Parents of children with Down syndrome say they often feel misunderstood by those who question their decision to have a child with a disability. They said many people fail to realize that medical, educational and legislative advances have dramatically improved life for those born with Down syndrome.
And they hope Palin's example will convince more parents that they, too, can handle the challenge of a Down syndrome child. Up to 90 percent of women who learn their fetus has Down syndrome terminate their pregnancy, studies suggest.
"For the first time, we have a mom in a position like that who's been through the emotions we've been through," said Michelle McCarthy of Ainsworth, Iowa. One of her 8-year-old twins has Down syndrome.
Palin did not say what her White House advocacy would mean.
During her few years as governor, she vetoed $275,000 for Alaska's Special Olympics -- half the amount being sought. Money for a program that helps rural school districts provide special education has remained flat. But she supported another legislative proposal to boost spending for students with special needs by some 175 percent in 2011.
Disability advocates said she hasn't been a strong voice for their cause -- at least not yet.
"It hasn't been on her radar screen," David Fleurant, executive director of the Disability Law Center of Alaska.
Still, many say her value if elected vice president could be less about laws or dollars and more about raising awareness -- simply by raising her son in the public eye.
David Tolleson, executive director of the National Down Syndrome Congress, said it was invaluable for people to see the Palins at the convention as "a happy, normal family passing the baby around."
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