Our family background
James immigrated to America from South Africa when he was twenty years old. After a few years, he met and married Melody Wright from New Albany, Indiana.
James started his own business, which eventually became Springbok Lawn and Landscape, LLC. Three years after they were wed, James and Melody were blessed with a firstborn son named Geoffrey James. With blonde hair, blue eyes, and a beautiful smile, this little guy quickly captured their hearts. Melody’s greatest desire – to be a mom – had been fulfilled.
When Geoffrey was 2 ½, Melody again became pregnant, this time with twins! Around that same time, James and Melody became concerned about Geoffrey. His speech wasn’t developing, he began looking out of his peripheral vision oddly, and his play patterns became abnormal. Though the pediatrician insisted that everything was fine, Melody pushed to have an evaluation done.
James and Melody received the devastating diagnosis of autism for Geoffrey. Autism is a developmental disorder of varying degrees of severity (thus, the term spectrum) characterized by difficulty in social interaction and communication.
The words “there is no known cause, there is no cure, and the condition is lifelong” caused these heartsore parents to leave the clinic that day feeling like the weight of the world had been dumped on their shoulders. In the 1980s, the rate of autism was only 1 in 10,000. At the time of Geoffrey’s diagnosis (2002), the prevalence had increased to 1 out of 150. Currently, the rate is 1 in 36.
Melody was seven months pregnant with their twin boys at the time of diagnosis and was put on bed rest just one week later. Joshua and Caleb were born six weeks early and required NICU care for 24 days. The next two years were a very trying time, and some days, the weary parents did their best just to survive.
Five years later, a precious baby girl named Heidi was added to the Pym family, and it was now complete. Currently, Geoff is in his early twenties. The preemie twins, Joshua and Caleb, are strapping young men enrolled at the US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. The baby of the family, beautiful daughter Heidi, is still in high school.
Education and Interventions
The Picture Exchange System (PECS) and social stories both played an important role in Geoffrey’s early communication and difficulties in adapting to change. A highlight of his elementary years was “Friends Club,” a group that his special education teacher established to meet once a week for Geoffrey to interact socially with typical peers.
The Pyms traveled to New York for two years so Geoffrey could receive an intervention called tDCS (trans-cranial direct stimulation.) At age 11, Geoffrey began taking piano lessons with a patient teacher who taught him using a method of memorizing songs (Simply Music). With Geoff’s incredible memory, he quickly built up a repertoire of songs he could play. Now he could show off for others, which gave him a needed boost of self-confidence.
When Geoffrey finished 5th grade, the Pyms decided to homeschool all of their children. This proved challenging, but Geoff thrived with one-on-one attention and made great strides in his education.
Through the years, James and Melody have tried every intervention, within reason, to help Geoffrey succeed. Speech and occupational therapy, music and behavior therapy, in-home ABA services, chiropractic and craniosacral care, massage therapy, biomedical interventions and supplementation, and dietary changes, to name a few. But, besides tDCS, by far, the most successful intervention to date has been Spelling to Communicate, otherwise known as S2C. It allowed Geoff to finally discover his voice. (www.growingkidstherapy.com)
Geoff discovers his voice (written by him)
Come along with me as I recount my communication journey.
First, let me describe what it is like to be a non-speaker. Imagine that your mind is chock full of words and novel ideas, but your inept motor system will not cooperate with your mouth to release them. This is not a one-time occurrence but has happened almost every waking moment of your 23 years on the planet. You know that your mental acuity matches or surpasses that of your speaking peers but have no method to demonstrate your true capabilities. On top of this crushing reality that is your world, everyone treats you like a toddler who did not understand what was said the first time.
Now that you have a minute glimpse of what life is like for most non-speakers, let me insert a glimmer of hope. Enter – Mrs. Kelley Howe of Knoxville, Tennessee – S2C practitioner. She presumes competence, which simply means, she treats me with respect and assumes I am of age-level intelligence.
Spelling to Communicate (S2C) is a revolutionary communication program designed by a creative autism mom to break the grip of silence in which her son was trapped. It involves training the gross motor muscles of the shoulder and arm of a non-speaker so the mind and body can be in synchrony. Autism-spectrum individuals struggle constantly maintaining enough regulated and focused attention to complete a given task. To do this effectively, much coaching and patience is required.
This is where my hero Kelley championed my plight. She saw past my recalcitrant motor system, glimpsed the hidden treasure within, and set to work digging it out one lesson and session at a time. The “aha” moment came when she taught me how muscles work. Hearing medical terms at my intelligence level for the first time ever was astounding and made me greatly anticipate each new section of the lesson, soaking up this newfound knowledge like a thirsty sponge. My greatest surprise came when she picked up a stencil board with letters cut out of it, handed me a pencil, and began asking comprehension questions. To my utter delight, with her patient support and coaching, I was able to get my hand to poke the correct letters that my mind had immediately retrieved.
The blessed hope that flooded my soul at that moment was indescribable! It almost seemed too good to be true after waiting my whole life with no reprieve in sight. However, after it kept recurring over the course of an hour, the realization dawned on me that this might transform my future. That is when joy, deep and untainted, began bubbling up from my soul in the form of uncontrollable laughter. The room was fairly crackling with raw emotion. My mom was almost sobbing, and I was laughing with sheer delight and ecstasy.
Not only had I found my voice, but a whole new world now lay at my fingertips, quite literally. Things that had previously been impossible suddenly became attainable. At the top of that list was reciprocal friendships.
So began this remarkable communication journey that continues to open once-locked doors. I am beyond grateful for God’s miraculous provision
Special Hearts Speak is Born
For probably 15 years or more, James and Melody have talked about finding a way to support other special-needs families. They knew their journey, as challenging and painful as it has been, had a higher purpose to it. If they could alleviate even a small portion of other families’ heartache by sharing lessons they had learned along the way, it would be worth it.
A serious car accident was a wake-up call to the brevity of life, and the Pyms began to earnestly discuss what they may be called to do to help the special-needs community. In 2022, in correlation with Geoffrey’s S2C journey, the decision was made to start a non-profit. Geoff’s dream and that of his parents’ merged, and the name Special Hearts Speak was given to James. The mission of this non-profit is to provide purposeful employment and community for special-needs adults, thereby restoring their dignity and respect.
Geoff, through his letter board, has played an integral part in many decisions regarding the creation of Special Hearts Speak, including helping to design the logo, polish up the mission and vision statements, and providing insight into the selection of our founding board members.
Another foundational part in forming Special Hearts Speak was finding Erin Kiltz, the founder of Brookwood in Georgetown, Texas (BiG) www.brookwoodingeorgetown.org) She runs a successful vocational program that employs nearly 100 special needs adults. BiG has been in operation for eleven years and is thriving. Its special needs citizens create and sell beautiful products that cover a quarter of their operating expenses.
James and Melody are one of seven communities in several states that are currently being mentored by Erin and BiG. Their goal is to partner with a local church to get the vocational program launched.
This whole undertaking is a huge leap of faith for James and Melody. But, one of their favorite quotes is, “God doesn’t call the qualified; He qualifies the called.” They have definitely heard the call. In Geoff’s words: “What we hope to accomplish with SHS is to tap into the deep reservoir of each individual that participates in our humble program, highlighting their God-given strengths and helping them shine in the best possible light.”
