Reece and His Family Enjoy a Break by the Beach
Meet Reece, who doesn’t let anything stop him from living his best life!
A big fan of the great outdoors, he gets out and about around Perth enjoying picnics, barbecues and bushwalks whenever the weather permits. But being nautical by nature, his favourite activities are those closest to the coast: spending time by the seaside at Hillary’s Boat Harbour, enjoying boat and ferry rides, and watching the waves go by.
Reece’s enthusiasm for the sea made a summertime trip to Esperance with his mum, Helen, and family friends – his first holiday in 24 years – extra special.
Reece lives in a home with his housemates and support team and regularly spends quality time with mum. During the lead-up to their holiday, this time was spent planning the trip and making an exciting to-do list.
As routines and a sense of predictability are important to Reece, making plans also meant he could become familiar and more comfortable with the details of his journey and stay down south.
It was smooth sailing after that as Reece, Helen and their friends headed to their destination, keen to make the most of their time away.
Reece had a blast taking walks around the Esperance town centre, along the waterfront, and up Mount Dempster; watching people fish from the jetty; seeing regional sights like the Pink Lake and the beautiful beaches of Cape Le Grand National Park; and checking out some of the other local surf beaches. He especially enjoyed having lunch and coffee with his travel troupe at Lucky Bay.
Evenings were spent in his favourite spot on the sofa, often with a book he had chosen from the local op-shop – a relaxing way to end the busy days of exploring.
Reece’s calmness and smiles each day made it clear that he was having a terrific trip, after putting in a lot of work and making major progress beforehand with his support team by his side.
Going on holiday was a big goal for Reece, and over the last few years he and his family worked closely with his support team to make this Esperance escape possible. In that time, he learned to be more confident in his communication – using pointing, facial expressions, and fist bumps – to express himself.
Using social stories and other visual supports, Reece has a go at ordering his favourite coffee; and is managing some changes to his routine when they do happen, which showed on their trip.
Josephine, Reece’s therapist, says his Supported Independent Living and therapy team worked collaboratively with his family to carry important routines through to this holiday.
No matter where or when they are spending time together, his family is continuously impressed by his progress.
“I’m so very proud of how far he has come in the last few years. I know Geoff, his father, would be proud of him too,” says Helen.
Reece and his mum are so excited to make more memories and share new experiences that they are already planning another adventure, this time to Bunbury.
With Reece going from strength to strength and always buoyed by the beach, we cannot wait to “sea” some snapshots!
