Life Planning Tools

Missouri Family to Family

Housed at UMKC Institute of Human Development, Missouri Family to Family serves individuals with disabilities, their families and the professionals who support them. This organization is a statewide network for families offering free supports to people with disabilities and their families. For more information, visit the Missouri Family to Family site.

What About my Dreams? Life Trajectory

As each new person enters this world and even before they actually enter people have dreams for them. Some people have more specific dreams about their children, grandchildren etc. but most people vision a healthy, happy person with friends, interests to pursue and some sort of path. Go to school, maybe college, enter into a significant relationship, possibly marriage, find work they enjoy and are good at so they can support themselves, hobbies that interest them etc. People with developmental disabilities and their families are not different in this way at all. For this to be possible, people with developmental disabilities must be exposed to opportunities and they must be treated with respect and dignity. Often it is difficult to keep those dreams and vision of a good life or to even identify them at some junctures. Life Course Tools help with this over the lifespan. During the early years parents and service providers naturally have greater input, but as the person develops their own tastes, preferences and aspirations, those become the drivers behind what supports and services are needed and how they are delivered.

The charting process includes families, professionals and service providers but ultimately revolves around helping the individual enjoy the life they most want to live.

Experiences and Questions Booklet