Jenny, Frannie and Elle’s Story

Jenny’s Story

My name is Jenny. When I first joined Reaching for Rainbows, I was afraid of just about everything. I didn’t know how to talk to other kids, so I mostly talked to adults when I did say anything at all. My favourite thing to do at Rainbows was paint … all by myself. But then the volunteers started asking me to play games with them or work on a project, and while we were playing, they would ask me questions and talk to me. They started inviting some of the other girls over to play with us, which eventually got me talking to them, too. And it started getting easier and easier.

 By the time I graduated from Rainbows, I had made some good friends. Not just at Rainbows, but at school too. Now I belong to the school choir and the drama club. I graduated from Rainbows two years ago, and I’m still singing and acting. When I’m old enough, I’d like to volunteer at Reaching for Rainbows so that I can help other girls who are like I was.

Frannie’s Story

When I joined Reaching for Rainbows, I had a really bad speech impediment. No one could understand what I was saying. I felt like I was living in a place where nobody spoke the same language as me. At school, nobody talkedto me. At Rainbows, everybody talked to me andI had friends. The people at Rainbows helped me get speech therapy. That was good, but it was the conversation and the friends I made at Rainbows that really made the difference.

 I still hang out with the four close friends I met at Rainbows, but I also have friends at school too. I’ve joined the 4-H Club, and I’ve been sewing, cooking, gardening and learning how to look after small pets. I’ve even been brave enough to volunteer for some things.

Elle’s Story

I’m Elle, Frannie’s little sister. I have a speech impediment, too. Even at Rainbows, I felt at first like I didn’t fit in, but then I found Katy, one of the volunteers. She tried really hard to understand me, and I started talking more and more. Katy helped me to make friends with the other girls by inviting them over to do an activity or work on a project with us. Then the girls started coming over without Katy asking them. Pretty soon, I was playing with them all on my own.

Their Mom

My girls have come such a long way thatI’ve been able to enrol at community college. I’m close to graduating as a personal support worker.