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WALKING HUMBLY
t was 1959. She was 17 and married. She delivered the first of her three sons in the hospital. They told her he had a cut on his lip, but that was a gross understatement that did not prepare her. When they laid her newborn son in her arms she saw that his cleft lip and palette were so severe that she described her son as having half a face, no nose, no mouth. But on that day, not only was a child born with special
needs, but an even stronger advocate was birthed. She would fight tirelessly for her son, Kenneth, and every child with special needs in Floyd County and the surrounding community from then on. “I thought my heart would stop,” said Judy Stevens, as she passionately told a story she has recounted many times. “From the time he came in the world,
I knew that having a special needs baby was going to be a lifelong process, but my baby was my inspiration, the motivation to reach out to other children with special needs.” Kenneth had his first plastic surgery when he was just six weeks old. That was the start of a long journey for his family. As Kenneth has gotten older, he has increasing mobility challenges.
(left to right) Judy Stevens and her sons Kenneth and Sam. SPRING / SUMMER 2018 | christianapp.org/MtSpiritGive
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