The IncrediBella’s

2010


When you give help, you give hope!

Dear Family and Friends,

Many of you know our Daughter, Isabella’s, story or most parts of it and are usually astounded by the progress that she has made. Most the time I enjoy taking full credit for her gains, but this would have me leaving out a very important part of our story.
Isabella’s story began on December 4, 2005, when the cruel reality that everyone is not given a perfect bundle of joy, became our reality.
Isabella was born with so many complications that after eight weeks in the NICU, Joe and I were patted on our backs and sent home with well wishes from Nurses and Doctors alike. The Doctors never did quite have a handle on what exactly Isabella’s issues were, but they were certain that she would never crawl, talk, see, walk or most likely even live to her first birthday.
I spent the next couple of weeks in a quiet existence, just rocking my little girl, singing and promising things, that I myself did not know if I could even grant.
Then at 3 months of age, two beautiful women from the Children’s Center for the Visually Impaired (CCVI) campus came into our home to perform a visual evaluation on Isabella and our lives changed almost instantly. They assured me after the evaluation that Isabella, could in fact see and that she was not completely blind. They went on to explain that we would take the vision that she did have and would improve upon it. We were set up with therapists with visual impairment backgrounds, that would come into our home on a weekly basis, to not only work with Isabella but to teach and instill confidence into a very lost Mother.
At two years of age, Isabella started two mornings a week in CCVI’s preschool program and from there her truest potential was only highlighted.
Isabella continues receiving early education with CCVI in the preschool 4 class, four full days a week. In these four days of school Isabella receives occupational, physical, orientation and mobility, assistive technology, speech, vision and aqua therapies.
For 58 years CCVI has had the mission statement to prepare children with visual impairment, including those with multiple disabilities, to function at their highest potential in the sighted world.
That is why our family, along with 400 other families, trusts CCVI to play such a significant role in our Daughters life.
Each April, we are allowed the chance to give back just a small dose of our gratification to CCVI through the Trolley Run. With this fundraiser we have fun setting goals and creating family team names. Our goal this year for The IncrediBella’s is $2,000!!!
We ask you, our family and friends, to contribute to the 23rd annual Trolley Run on April 17, 2011, by participating in the 4 mile walk/run, sponsoring our family team, The IncrediBella’s, or both.
You can donate directly through our personal website, listed at the bottom of this letter, or make a check out to CCVI and mail it to our home address at 1702 NW 63rd Ter in Kansas City MO 64118. CCVI is a 501 (c)(3) so you can write off your donation.
Thank you in advance for your continued support.
Love,
Joe, Rachel, Isabella and Remington Riddell

Trolley Team 2009

Trolley Run Website ~ http://tinyurl.com/37pboyz