‘Fun mail’ helping Columbiana County man find routine during coronavirus response
Isaiah Roach has been receiving mail from around the country which has lifted his spirits while his place of employment is closed during the pandemic.
CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) - People who thrive on routine are having difficulty navigating life as local and national health care workers and leaders tackle the coronavirus pandemic.
Stay-at-home orders mean most people are having to find new ways to stay entertained while at home, and it can present extra challenges to those with disabilities.
Elaine Gardner found herself having to explain to her son, Isaiah Roach, why he couldn’t go to his weekday job at the Employment Development Inc. in East Liverpool.
Isaiah, who’s 23 years old, is on the autism spectrum. Going to “workshop,” as they call it, provides him with work, a paycheck and an opportunity to make friends.
“It gives them a safe place to go where they can be themselves,” Gardner said.
But, Employment Development Inc. has been forced to temporarily close as the state fights against the spread of coronavirus.
“He cried. Isaiah doesn’t cry, and he cried because he was sad that workshop was closed and his whole routine had changed. It was flipped upside down,” Gardner said.
She got to thinking and ended up talking to a mom who said her children needed to practice handwriting which led to an all call for people to send Isaiah mail.
Since then, the mailbox at Isaiah’s home as been overflowing with letters, sticker-books, cards, drawing, books and small toys. People have even mailed beach towels, a small aquarium and plastic Easter eggs to decorate.
Gardner has been blown away by the response.
“I think it’s given people something positive to focus on,” Gardner said. " I think right now everybody feels helpless, so this gives them something positive to focus on."
Isaiah’s been featured in the local paper and he and his mom have been doing Facebook Live videos to show people the impact they’re having.
Gardner said her family is just one of millions having to have difficult conversations with their children, trying to explain what the coronavirus is and why it’s changing up daily so much.
One message from a stranger caught Gardner by surprise.
“'She said, ‘Thank you for being a voice and shedding light to what all of us parents are going through, because our kids don’t understand.’”
Everyone who’s sent a piece of mail has shed a little light into Isaiah’s day and perhaps their own.
“What an amazing community we have here and people really do pull through and are there for each other,” Gardner said.
Autism Speaks has a wealth of information to help families learn about COVID-19 including online learning resources.
Psychology Today also has tips for explaining coronavirus to those on the autism spectrum.
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