This past April at our Ability Lunch, we recognized the abilities of Josiah, a five-year-old boy who began receiving early intervention services from us at 8 months of age. Josiah was diagnosed with Noonan Syndrome which has created a set of challenges for him and his family, but through the work of speech and occupational therapists at Easterseals Crossroads, he is meeting important developmental milestones. You can watch, listen or read the captions to his incredible story here:
On Saturday, May 23, Josiah was surprised with an incredible day of fun involving The Indianapolis 500 and race car driver Josef Newgarden of CFH Racing. Josiah was nominated for and won a room makeover contest thanks to Century 21, and on that Saturday he and his family left for the day only to return to a remarkable change.
Century 21 Scheetz realtors and staff volunteered to spend the day painting walls, assembling furniture and transforming the room both Josiah and Isaiah, his four-year-old brother, share together. A race car bunk bed was built along with vinyl wall decals of Josef Newgarden and his car.
While they were quickly turning his room into a new play space, Josiah’s siblings and parents all went to the 500 Festival Parade in downtown Indianapolis where Josiah and his mother rode in the pace car with Josef Newgarden. Once the parade was over, they traveled back to the house where a large group of Century 21 staff and media representatives were present to unveil the room to the family.
Once Josiah and Isaiah saw the large yellow and black balloon arch, they ran inside and went straight for their room. Both boys were overcome with “wow’s” and cries of joy as they began investigating all of the new items in their room. The light fixture in the ceiling was replaced with a race car that lit up, and upon seeing it Josiah said “How’d they get that up there?” Josef Newgarden quickly came in and autographed the race car for him, along with a piece of the car that he crashed last week.
Shortly after the boys explored the room, the President and CEO of Century 21 Real Estate, Richard Davidson, presented the family with five tickets to attend The Indianapolis 500 in the Century 21 suite. Josiah’s father Bill stepped outside to reflect on the joy that was presented to his family, all because of the support Century 21 gives to the community and to Easterseals. He was very humbled to be receiving such support for his family.
Easterseals Crossroads is proud to partner with Century 21 Scheetz for our annual Bingo Bonanza event and other volunteer opportunities and fundraisers throughout the year. Many thanks go to Mick Scheetz, Valerie and Neil Perry, Rick Davidson, Tracy Hutton, Jill Johnson, Brian Wayman and Ron Green for spending the day in support of Josiah and his family.
For more information, read the article from Will Higgins in The Indianapolis Star and view photos on our Facebook page.
