“No society can long sustain itself unless its members have learned the sensitivities, motivations and skills involved in assisting and caring for other human beings.”      -Urie Bronfenbrenner

The process of becoming a caregiver has always intrigued me, ever since I decided, many years ago, to become an early childhood special educator. As part of this process I volunteered at schools, institutions, and sheltered workshops that provided services to both children and adults with physical and learning disabilities. I was struck by the comments from family, relatives, friends and even individuals, newly introduced to me, when they discovered that I was interested in becoming a special educator. They often praised me for my interest in caring for these children and adults. This praise was usually followed by “I could never do that, it would just be too difficult for me;” or “It takes a ‘special’ kind of person to do that kind of work.”

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