Steve and I had lived in Houston, Texas for almost 50 years. Autumn was born and grew up there so all of us had deep roots and a great life.
Life had always been good for her there but for the past few years it seemed that opportunities for growth and development had become limited for a number of reasons beyond anyone’s control. She seemed less content and didn’t always want to return home after staying a few days with us. By that time, Steve and I had both been retired for a few years and our life had become comfortable, pleasant and with few challenges.
One day we had a conversation about that. We decided that since we didn’t know how many years we had left on this earth, why not live it out in a beautiful place? We were both somewhat familiar with North Carolina from our travels and had never seen a place up here that wasn’t beautiful. But any move on our part would have to include a home for Autumn that was at least as good, or better, than where she’s been. As much as we wanted to be somewhere else, we weren’t going to disrupt Autumn’s life for no good reason. So I Googled “Assisted living for adults with special needs in North Carolina.” Not much came up but one thing that did was Peacehaven Community Farm. The more we read, the more excited we became.
Steve and I took a trip to check out the area around the farm. We were lovingly welcomed to share lunch with the core members and Adam, and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.
While sharing lunch we FaceTimed Autumn and she got to meet everyone at the table. We found ourselves delighted with Greensboro and the surrounding area. Back at home we filled out Peacehaven’s application paperwork, put our house on the market, and prepared for a new adventure. That was October 2022. In May 2023 we made the move and have loved every day we’ve been here. Autumn started spending as much time as possible at the farm absorbing the wonderful, wholesome life there. She enrolled in RISE for the summer and learned so much about self-reliance and responsibility, teamwork and comportment. Her dream has always been to work in a library so her focus throughout RISE was to get ready for that possibility.
September 1 was move-in day. “Team Autumn” showed up at our house with pickup trucks and moved all her furniture and media collection (no small feat!) What a joy for us! Autumn was drawn into family life at the farm immediately — in fact, all of us were. We have seen a lot of change and growth in her, not the least of which is improved speech — without speech therapy. Day-to-day life with Anne, Jeff, Adam and Ben, Darryl and Jen, and the entire staff and volunteers has drawn her forward to speak in whole sentences. She knows she is deeply loved and appreciated exactly as she is. There are so many opportunities for wholistic growth — cognitive, spiritual, self-reliance, maturity, personal responsibility, along with the great joy of just being alive in nature on the farm.
Steve and I (and many others) have given a great deal of time and energy to praying for Autumn, and God has been utterly faithful to us in every way. Peacehaven is God’s latest gift. It makes one of my favorite scriptures come alive to me: God can do anything, you know — far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams. Ephesians 3:20
