by Melissa Hawkes of DFW Reporting

My Possibilities is helping to educate and provide guidance to more than 60 adults.

“Kristin developed some depression about four years out of high school basically because there wasn’t anything for her to do,” said Julie Stoebner.

Stoebner’s daughter Kristin is 24 and has Down syndrome. Once she was out of high school at 21, she had no place to go and nothing to do.

“She’s a very social person and she needed more contact,” said Stoebner. “It just wasn’t offered anywhere.”

Stoebner found My Possibilities, which is a non-profit organization in Plano designed specifically for adults with disabilities. Now, she drives 300 miles every week so that Kristin’s possibilities never come to an end.

“She’s doing much better,” said Stoebner. “She really is. She’s on a few medicines, but I think in addition to that, it’s just being at My Possibilities. The stimulus that she gets and the involvement has all helped.”

My Possibilities curriculum goes well beyond the subjects taught in most schools.

“This would be like a university of life college,” said founder of My Possibilities Charmaine Solomon. “We teach them social skills. We teach them leadership. What we are doing is raising the bar. We are making them be more responsible as adults.”

There are more then 20,000 adults in north Texas with some type of disability. Right now, My Possibilities is helping to educate and provide guidance to more than 60 of these adults.

“This is very personal to me,” said Solomon. “My son goes to My Possibilities. When my son was a year out of school and he was graduating, my first thought was, 'What am I going to do?'”

Solomon is one of three founders that came up with a solution to not only their problem but one shared by many parents throughout Texas.

“This is so good because there was not anything else for kids after they graduated from high school with special needs or adults with special needs,” said Julie Gentry.

Gentry’s son Michael has been with My Possibilities since opening day 15 months ago. He suffers from seizures, which made Gentry feel uneasy leaving him anywhere but at My Possibilities.

“It’s given me freedom to where I can go and do what I need to do,” said Gentry.

The adults in the program aren’t just students. They’re HIPsters, which stands for Hugely Important People.

“I like it here,” said My Possibilities student Dwayne Lopez. “I like my friends.”

“I like hanging out with my friends,” said My Possibilities student Aaron Yordy.

“There’s homework and we do a little dancing,” said my Possibilities student Mathew Diggs.

My Possibilities hopes to provide each HIPster with the tools needed to work and live independently, which is usually a goal every parent wants for their child.

To learn more about the My Possibilities in Plano, Texas go to www.MyPossibilities.org.

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