Nestor L

My Story

I am a doting dad to two kids to whom I have been their stay-at-home dad for the past 17 years. After pre-schooling my kids at home, I volunteered heavily at the K-12 school where they are enrolled. Volunteering at the school for over a decade serving as teacher at times, to volunteer coordinator, to lunch coordinator, to aftercare supervisor, to spiritual counsel, and lots of roles in between has been some of the most rewarding experiences in my life.

One of those experiences at the school led to providing aide to two good friends with autism. One of those buds was the adult son of our upper school principal who employed me to be his aide as he did janitorial services at the school; she trained me to provide aide to her son and I did so for three years. He’s a giant of a man over 6’4″ with the heart and mind of a kindergartener and a mighty gentle spirit; I call him my BFG, big friendly giant. The other bud was a third grader at the school to whom I provided in-class aide. His mom and his ABA therapists trained me to work with him employing ABA techniques and non-verbal communication necessary in the classroom and did so for a school year. When my relationship to both ended, it left a big gulf in my heart, and a desire to keep providing this type of aide to others with special needs. At least with my two buds, I had a gifting when it came to them, however their gift to me left a much bigger impression on my life and a deep desire to keep serving others and making a positive impact on their lives and their family’s lives.