Lynda and William Together at OCDC and Millcreek

Lynda went to school at the Oxford Child Development Center when we moved back to Mississippi.  We moved back just a few months before one of Lynda's classmates became of full-time resident at Millcreek Rehabilitation Center in Magee, Mississippi.  William was a beautiful little boy diagnosed with autism also but unlike Lynda,  William would lay on his mat at nap time and recite his alphabet to the adults who would sit beside him as he marked time during naps.  I think it was rare that he slept.  It was rare that Lynda slept either but she wasn't so polite as to lie there and quietly recite the alphabet or a song.  Lynda was more into playing catch me if you can.

Both children were five years old in the picture.  William and Lynda both were at Millcreek together when Lynda was admitted in September, 1981.  William had been a resident since 1976.  I knew that he was at Millcreek and that was one of the reasons that I felt that as an alternative to NMRC who had no respite slots at the time, Millcreek must be a good placement because William had been living there for five years.  Lynda would probably be there for a maximum of five months.

Life is full of ironies and paths crossing in ways that we don't understand. 

Lynda experienced a massive stroke as a result of negligence on the part of the Millcreek staff who didn't find Lynda having the seizure until she had suffered irreparable brain damage.  She was paralyzed on the right side and no longer recognized anyone or anything she had previously known.
This happened on January 21, 1982.  For the next 30 years she lived without being able to speak and had limited mobility.

While William was on an Easter Egg Hunt on good Friday with the Millcreek staff in Magee, William was allowed to wander away from the group.  With no supervision, he crawled under a fence and into a creek.  He drown on April 9, 1982.

These two beautiful children were ten years old.  Both families had every expectation to believe that their children would be supervised and would be safe.  It is chilling to realize how few days there were between Lynda's life-changing stroke and the day William perished. 

Children in the Class Photo:

I can remember all of the children's names except one and I'm sure Wanda Dean can tell me his name.
Back row:  Gloria, Michael, Jonathan, William, and ?   Their teacher was Diane Horan.
Front row:  John, Rachel, Angie, Willie and Lynda.  Gloria and Michael passed away as a result of complications of their disabilities many years after this picture was made.