Marla Garstka
Chicago Lighthouse
Birth - 3

"I can’t change what is, but we can maximize what they have." Those are words that Marla Garstka lives by every day in her role as an early intervention specialist with The Chicago Lighthouse for People Who are Blind or Visually Impaired. Garstka feels a key to helping these children succeed is to help parents "see the glass as half full." She is able to focus on emerging skills and learning abilities rather than looking at disabilities. "I see parents who are going through such grieving—parents who are grieving their hopes, grieving their dreams for their children," says Garstka. "It makes me so happy to see the growth in both the parents and the kids over just a few years. And it feels good to see just how proud the parents are with their children’s progress."

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