“We are so grateful to be a VIPS family”

April 2, 2024

Driving home from the ophthalmologist’s office, Victoria and Josiah’s concerns were confirmed— their baby boy Lucas has Cortical Visual Impairment (CVI) and Strabismus. At the time, Lucas was not able to track his toys, watch his older brother dance, or see his parent’s faces. His family felt defeated. 

There are so many unknowns for a young family of a child with visual impairments, but Lucas’ parents were not ready to sit by without giving their son all the opportunity to succeed despite his vision loss! They met with their VIPS interventionist, “Miss B”, and within that first session, she was able to isolate specific colors, textures, and lights that Lucas could focus on. She left their home equipping the family with ideas and resources to work on improving Lucas’ vision.

Lucas’ family drove all the way from northeast Indiana to Louisville, Kentucky to attend the annual VIPS family retreat. The connections they made were priceless, “It meant the world to spend time with other families who had similar experiences to us. We left that weekend even more equipped and empowered to advocate for our son’s future.” They felt encouraged knowing that both of their sons were taken care of by the VIPS staff and volunteers while they were able to attend sessions during the retreat.

Lucas in his stander with a tray in front of him with light up toys. He is asleep with his head on the tray.

Lucas just turned two, and Victoria and Josiah are still uncertain about his vision. However, through the help of early intervention, they feel better prepared to help him reach his goals, ”We as parents have been trained to advocate for our son and to work with him on a daily basis to encourage his visual strengths and to continue to work on his deficits. We are so grateful to be a VIPS family.” Raising a child who is blind or visually impaired can be isolating and hopeless, but VIPS aims to empower all parents or caregivers to be their child’s best advocate while providing a community that is rooting for the success of their family.

Leave a Comment

You may also like…

Harvey is using a switch-activated car while his mother sits behind him.
June 30, 2026
This is Harvey! He has been crushing his goals lately! His mom, Daisy, has been working on encouraging him to sit independently while using his vision in his lower field. As you can see in the picture, he is pushing his switch to activate his transformer car, which is his favorite toy! This is no small feat for him, as reaching and looking at the same time is challenging. Daisy was so pleased at how well he was able to not only use his vision, but activate his core muscles to remain in a sitting position. We are so proud of Harvey!
Roxanne smiles for the camera while sitting on the side of a sandbox.
June 27, 2026
Today's Milestone Monday features Roxanne having a grand time playing in her back yard. Her willingness to get messy means she can learn all about new textures!
Part of the movie poster for Thunder Rolls with a baseball player swinging a bat.
By N/A N/A June 23, 2026
Louisville East Lions Club and Indy Thunder Present "The Sounds of Beep Baseball"