From Mary & Rachelle: “Amanda is our cousin, she loves singing, making people smile and telling jokes. We have a very small family here in Australia and we are fortunate to have Amanda in our lives. She is very important to us because she is always ready for a cheeky laugh and is very caring about everyone in her life. Now that we are older, we both felt we needed to do some planning for Amanda’s future and think about the roles we might need to take on.”
Mary and Rachelle joined Amanda’s Circle of Support when they were teenagers. They have continued to enjoy spending time with Amanda as they’ve grown older, making time for her between their busy studies and full-time work. Recently they’ve taken important steps for safeguarding Amanda’s future.
Over a period of 18 months, Mary, Rachelle and their Aunty met together to talk about the future and to plan out what was needed. The Circle of Support facilitator guided the process and helped document an action plan and time frames.
Some resources that were used:
From Mary & Rachelle: “We went at our pace. There were some uncomfortable conversations, emotion and tears. It brought us all closer together and now we have a clear picture on what is needed in the future. We are now identified as having official authority in Amanda’s life as her mother is ageing, we will be there for Amanda for her future.” from Mary & Rachelle
Amanda’s Circle facilitator shared how the conversation with Amanda went when she checked whether it would be okay to share this story. “It was so nice to see Amanda’s face change as I read what her cousins had said about her. She said she felt good about her cousins, and confirmed that she understood what we meant by talking about their roles and safeguarding her future: “they help me” she said with a coy smile on her face. I replied with yes, they help you and they love you and will look out for you.”
