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UNSUNG HEROINE: Therapist praised for progress with “profoundly deaf†boy - Quincy, MA - The Patriot Ledger
When 2-year-old Jacob MacKinnon asked for ice cream at a birthday party, his family and the guests were stunned.
“Our jaws dropped,” said his mother, Gail MacKinnon.
Born with the genetic disorder Usher Syndrome, Jacob was “profoundly deaf” and could not ask questions, give answers or tell his family his needs and wants, his mother said.
But after living two years with the disorder, Jacob made a key step forward when he communicated his wish for the ice cream treat.
Gail MacKinnon of Lakeville said she credits that progress to Heather E. Ashworth, a Middleboro therapist who ended Jacob’s isolation and helped make the family whole by teaching them to communicate.
Jacob, MacKinnon’s second child, was born with Usher Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that causes deafness, effects balance and can lead to blindness.
Jacob and his family couldn’t communicate. Simple questions went unanswered. Jacob’s world was silent, and his family couldn’t reach him.
“It was a very difficult time in our lives,” said Gail MacKinnon. “It felt so gloomy ... we were lost. I was lost in the maze of early intervention and services for my son.”
When Ashworth took over Jacob’s case at Associates for Human Services Inc. in Taunton, things turned around.
“When she came along, she brightened our day,” said MacKinnon.
Ashworth works primarily with children who have speech and hearing delays in an early intervention program designed for the developmentally delayed.
“It was like all the walls in the maze disappeared and suddenly there were signs pointing the way. Heather has a take-charge attitude and within weeks we were receiving all the services we needed,” MacKinnon said.
When Jacob was a year old, he underwent an operation so he could wear a hearing device, a cochlear implant. At 13 months, he heard his first sound, and after 9 to 10 months of working with Ashworth, Jacob learned to respond, said his mother.
It was during a children’s birthday party as the cake was being cut that 2-year-old Jacob said his first words.
His grandmother was serving the treats when Jacob said, “Ice cream.”
Since that day, MacKinnon said her son has progressed “exponentially” to the point she is hoping that by kindergarten he can be “mainstreamed” into a public school.
In gratitude for the remarkable progress her son made under Ashworth’s care, MacKinnon nominated her as an Unsung Heroine, and the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women made the award.
“It’s a wonderful honor, it brought tears to my eyes,” Ashworth said. “I never expected that sort of recognition.”
“She got my son to do things that others couldn’t,” said MacKinnon. “She has a personality that’s genuine. The impact she made not just on our son, but our lives was amazing.”
When 2-year-old Jacob MacKinnon asked for ice cream at a birthday party, his family and the guests were stunned.
“Our jaws dropped,” said his mother, Gail MacKinnon.
Born with the genetic disorder Usher Syndrome, Jacob was “profoundly deaf” and could not ask questions, give answers or tell his family his needs and wants, his mother said.
But after living two years with the disorder, Jacob made a key step forward when he communicated his wish for the ice cream treat.
Gail MacKinnon of Lakeville said she credits that progress to Heather E. Ashworth, a Middleboro therapist who ended Jacob’s isolation and helped make the family whole by teaching them to communicate.
Jacob, MacKinnon’s second child, was born with Usher Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that causes deafness, effects balance and can lead to blindness.
Jacob and his family couldn’t communicate. Simple questions went unanswered. Jacob’s world was silent, and his family couldn’t reach him.
“It was a very difficult time in our lives,” said Gail MacKinnon. “It felt so gloomy ... we were lost. I was lost in the maze of early intervention and services for my son.”
When Ashworth took over Jacob’s case at Associates for Human Services Inc. in Taunton, things turned around.
“When she came along, she brightened our day,” said MacKinnon.
Ashworth works primarily with children who have speech and hearing delays in an early intervention program designed for the developmentally delayed.
“It was like all the walls in the maze disappeared and suddenly there were signs pointing the way. Heather has a take-charge attitude and within weeks we were receiving all the services we needed,” MacKinnon said.
When Jacob was a year old, he underwent an operation so he could wear a hearing device, a cochlear implant. At 13 months, he heard his first sound, and after 9 to 10 months of working with Ashworth, Jacob learned to respond, said his mother.
It was during a children’s birthday party as the cake was being cut that 2-year-old Jacob said his first words.
His grandmother was serving the treats when Jacob said, “Ice cream.”
Since that day, MacKinnon said her son has progressed “exponentially” to the point she is hoping that by kindergarten he can be “mainstreamed” into a public school.
In gratitude for the remarkable progress her son made under Ashworth’s care, MacKinnon nominated her as an Unsung Heroine, and the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women made the award.
“It’s a wonderful honor, it brought tears to my eyes,” Ashworth said. “I never expected that sort of recognition.”
“She got my son to do things that others couldn’t,” said MacKinnon. “She has a personality that’s genuine. The impact she made not just on our son, but our lives was amazing.”
