A Wish to be Understood: Corbett's Story
Corbett hears the laughter. He feels the joy. He knows the love that fills the room. Understanding has never been his challenge. Being understood is.
“He knows exactly what he wants to say. The barrier is his friends and family understanding him,” said Corbett’s mom, Eloise.
The 7-year-old, From Portland, was diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder shortly after birth. He spent the first eight weeks of his life in the NICU.
“Doctors performed a tracheostomy and placed a feeding tube. Before the surgery he made soft cooing sounds like any baby. Afterward, the sounds were gone,” said Corbett’s mom, Eloise. “Families like ours live day to day, week to week. We dream in increments, not in futures.”
Corbett is supported at home by his parents and 8 caregivers, who manage 9 daily medications, and coordinate with 10 different specialists, according to family. He communicates through body signals and is learning to use specialized assistive technology to speak. He answers yes and no with his eyes, nods his head, and even kicks his feet to make himself understood.
When Corbett learned he qualified for a wish, hope and possibility took flight in ways they never had before.
Being told that he could dream was a gift. Dreaming means imagining beyond survival. For families like ours, that is liberating.
Wish Mom, Eloise
His family sat around their living room and asked Corbett what he wanted most. His heartfelt wish would bring everyone together in an entirely new way.
“We asked him, ‘do you want your friends and family to understand you?’ And he had a very emphatic ‘yes.’”
What happened next was extraordinary.
Thanks to supporters like you, Make-A-Wish Oregon created Camp Corbett. The first Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) camp experience of its kind. The camp was designed to help Corbett’s loved ones move beyond speaking for him and instead begin speaking with him.
The greatest act of love is to be seen and heard, and this gift from Make-A-Wish was a way for Corbett to feel loved by his friends and family.
Wish Mom, Eloise
Andryce and Corbett reunite at Camp Corbett.
Make-A-Wish flew in Corbett’s speech pathologist from Arizona to help create the curriculum and co-lead the camp with Eloise.
“I believe that everyone has a story to tell, and they should be the authors of that story,” said Andryce Andres, MS, CCC-SLP Speech-Language Pathologist of Heart Speak Journeys.
Dozens of Corbett’s loved ones attended the camp, learning to read his body language and engage in two-way conversations with him using an iPad and apps like TD Snap and Pictello. TD Snap gives users a voice through symbols and text-to-speech, while Pictello helps them create personalized storyboards to share their thoughts and experiences.
Over the course of six immersive sessions, participants engaged in different learning pathways, each brought to life through thoughtfully themed activities.
“All of it is regular activities that kids would do, but practice using a communication way that is very different to people who have words,” said mom, Eloise.
Snapshots from Camp Corbett
Participants gather at Camp Corbett
Corbett and his friends race cars
Participants gather to learn about TD Snap.
Imaginary play time
One of the activities included a bracelet making station, which was designed not only as an act of friendship, but as a tangible reminder of how Corbett initiates communication.
“When Corbett has something to say, he raises his left fist, and he is generally intently looking at it,” said Andres. “So, we all made bracelets to wear as a reminder to show you have something to say, but using your arm first.”
“I believe that every being has this light inside of us and it’s a way that we can deeply listen to ourselves and to one another,” she added. “I think that if we do this collectively, if we deeply listen collectively, then our lights can illuminate this world.”
This kind of collective listening also lit a new path for hope.
“When your child is in pain and cannot tell you what hurts, it is its own kind of hell,” said Eloise. It’s a heavy thing to speak for your child. Of all the hats I wear, that one weighs the most.”
“Because of Make-A-Wish I feel an incredible relief, because I don’t have to speak for Corbett. Because of Make-A-Wish, he can speak for himself, and his community knows how to hear him."
"And if you’ve ever wondered what your donation makes possible, Corbett will tell you, himself in the video below."
Corbett's Review of Camp Corbett