...driving with Down syndrome
pictures below...

Here's the rest of the story about Jon, a young man with Down syndrome pictures of him in his car.

Jon's Story Part 1

Jon's Story, part 2

(As told by his mom, Sally)

Jon has wanted to do everything his older brother has done and his biggest disappointment was turning 16 and not being able to drive a car. But Jon overcame that also and with the help of Becoming Independent and North Bay Regional Center in 2004 he got his California driver’s license. He has his own car and drives not only to college but also to work and anyplace else he might want to go in the area. He is a very good driver. We have always taught Jon to do things the right way the first time as he doesn’t forget and will do it the same way each time thereafter.

The entire family is very proud of Jon’s achievements. He continues to amaze us and we look forward to the future with great happiness. He has truly been a blessing.

Here are Down syndrome pictures of Jon with his new car. He is volunteering at the Petaluma Valley Hospital this summer. He is what we use to call Candy Stripers in my day. He goes and visits the patients, takes their requests for the next days meals, delivers flowers and in general helps out where needed. Last week he was asked to play cards with one of the elderly patients to keep her company. Between his job at Safeway and volunteering he is one busy young man.

When he was 20 we heard of a lady at the organization called Becoming Independent who would be willing to do the handbook for Jon. Her only criteria was that he be able to read which he could do. So for the next 2 1/2 years she worked with him 1 day a week for an hour. They took the driving manual one page at a time and read it and worked on it till he understood what the rules of the road were. After 2 1/2 years she called us and said that Jon was ready to take the written exam for a permit. She thought it would be better for him to take the exam orally. However Jon did not do good on that as he is visual and not audio. He was very frustrated trying to understand how they wanted him to answer the questions. We finally said why don't you give Jon the paper test like everyone else and lets see what he can do. Given that he passed missing only one question.

With permit in hand we contacted our North Bay Regional Center and they agreed to fund the behind the wheel driving lessons. The driving instructor told us that normally it takes only 3 lessons before she feels the student is ready for the test, but with Jon it took 9 lessons and 5 months. Now it was time to go to DMV for his test. His dad took him and later told me that he left the building at the same time as another young man (non DS) that was taking his test. 15 minutes later the other young man came back but no Jon.

He was gone for over 40 minutes and my husband was getting very worried. When the inspector came back he told my husband that the reason they were gone so long was that he really put Jon through his paces. He had him drive through construction zones, school, residential, hospital, left turns, right turns, railroad tracks and everything he could think of and Jon passed only missing one item on the test. He got his license and there are no restrictions on it. He drives the freeways, 2 lane country roads, in rain, fog, in town etc.

Of all our children he is the best driver. Kids think after a while that they can up the speed limit and take a few chances but Jon has never had a ticket or accident. Not that it couldn't happen but like I said we found that if we teach Jon the correct way the first time he will do it like that each time. He has even corrected my driving on occasion. Parents of kids with Down syndrome pictures really don't feel comfortable letting their kids go in the car with Jon and I understand that but lately his girlfriend of 4 years has been allowed to go with him to the movies instead of her parents driving them. The first time it happened she told her parents "It was like a REAL date".

If you would like to brag a bit and share something that your loved one has achieved, send in your Down syndrome pictures and stories. We'll post them on this site. Let's show the world what kids, teens, and adults with Down syndrome can do.

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