What have some of the hardest parts of building a life together? Well,

I think probably finding a community where we felt like we belong.

That's been an ongoing struggle for us.

Well, The community that we are in now is definitely home for us.

We feel a belonging here that we've never felt before.

There's something special about this community and about the friends that we've made, the neighbors we have, their soul.

down to earth and sweet and forgiving and helpful and kind.

What has that process been like?

Rachel, what has your own journey with disability taught you? about understanding and supporting one another

well if it's okay i'm gonna share a story from childhood that was my first experience um so i i was friends with this girl named kathy now i was in the ninth grade and she had she was special needs and she got picked on constantly day long she got picked on at school and my heart just was just yearning for her to find some relief so I started being her friend and I would stand up for her when people would pick on her but because of that I wasn't able to keep friends one by one they would drop off wanting to be around me because I was friends with Kathy.

One day on the bus, a girl that went to my church said, if you sit by Kathy, I'm never going to speak to you again.

And she said it right in front of Kathy.

And I said, well, that's fine.

I'm still going to sit by Kathy.

And from that day on, I just had this.

help and teach each other true friendships