Our BLUE HEART Story

One blue heart was inspired by my son Sebashton Abel JR Beltran. The Moment I knew I was having a boy, I envisioned my “soccer mom” life and was so excited. I was overwhelmed with joy to be part

of all his sporting events, his dating stage, and so much more like many other moms"

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When Sebashton, nicknamed Bash, was approximately three years old, I faced the harsh reality of visible signs of autism. I argued with every doctor and did everything in my power to stop the disability labeling of my child. Two years later, when Bash was five, I finally accepted it. The process was really hard. The evaluations, the appointments, and the horrifying IPE meetings made life a little more difficult. I disliked those meetings because I questioned, how can an interview of thirty minutes to an hour allow them to determine what he needed?

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It wasn’t until I came into his world, that life became easier for the both of us. I started to focus on his strengths instead of his weaknesses. I pushed him to experience the world; traveling to different countries, going to amusement parks, plays, restaurants, and his favorite, swimming! I empathized and identified with all the other mothers going through what I was going through.

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Six years later, I decided to use my social media platform to share with the world what life with autism has been for us. That's when I started @one_blue_heart_at_a_time to encourage and help other moms who shared the same sentiments of a hopeless journey.According to statistics in April, 2018 1 in 59 children have been diagnosed with autism in the United States. Our children are gifted in many ways, they just lack the proper resources they need to reach their full potential. It is heart breaking that so many of them are not receiving the help they desperately need.  I understand and identify with the frustration and pain parents go through with this. We are constantly in need of services and children are on waiting lists for months, even years, for programs that are only available for an hour a week! This is where our foundation commits to making a change. 

 

My vision of a "soccer mom life" ended up being so much more than what I thought it would be. All the progress we have made has been so rewarding. I wouldn't trade it for anything in this world.

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Autism is a condition, not a definition, of who our children are!  This is an epidemic in our communities that we will beat.  It takes a village to make the change and get the resources our children desperately need. Together we will rise with one BLUE HEART at a time.