Dear Friends of Lifehouse,
My wife Erin and I have an autistic daughter, Sophia, who is 28 years old and has been supported by Lifehouse since 2017. We are incredibly grateful for the peace of mind Lifehouse has given us, knowing that Sophie will be well taken care of when we are gone.
Our son Ryan has been an incredible big brother to Sophie over the years, always sticking up for her and never allowing other kids to tease her; delivering a school assembly speech in the 8th grade about how Sophie is his hero (one of his teachers called us in tears); stepping out of the batter’s box during a high school baseball game to acknowledge her with a smile and a wave; and now enthusiastically serving as our co-conservator. When he moved to New York for work, he felt a lot of guilt over “leaving Sophie”. We told him that Lifehouse is taking care of the day-to-day, that he only needs to make the “big picture” decisions when we are gone. He comes back to visit us and Sophie several times a year and it is so heartwarming for Erin and me to see how much they love each other.
For the profound change that it has made in our lives, Erin and I are “all in” regarding our support for Lifehouse. Erin did the architecture and design for the renovation of Lifehouse’s headquarters building pro bono. I serve on the Board of Directors. We give generously, recognizing what we would have to spend to support Sophie without Lifehouse.
The state funding through the various Regional Centers covers approximately 90% of Lifehouse’s costs. The remaining 10% comes from the generosity of families and friends. As Lifehouse has grown to serve more people, this funding gap has grown to over $2.2m. Lifehouse needs your generous support more than ever in order to maintain a balanced budget.
Please join Erin and me in giving generously to sustain Lifehouse. Thank you very much.
Sincerely,
Doug Clough
Lifehouse Parent & Board Chair
