Madrona Rose Hartford is an amazing girl who lives with a condition called Cerebral Palsy (CP). This condition affects her speech and movement, while her intellect remains intact.

In her 9.5 years of life, she has developed a magnetic personality and an infectious sense of humor, largely due to the challenges that come with having a brilliant mind and spirit matched with a body that she is challenged to control.

On November 12th, 2011, Madrona was given a wonderful gift! A very generous donor gifted Madrona with a MyTobii ATI , an assistive device that will allow Madrona to communicate freely with her friends and family. Madrona’s CP creates challenges with both fine and gross motor control, and therefore it has been difficult to pinpoint a communication device that would be appropriate for her. Since she has full control of her eye movement, the MyTobii ATI turned out to be the perfect match. The computer’s infrared sensors allow her to use her eyes as a cursor on the screen of her Tobii. In this way, she can successfully translate her thoughts and desires into audible language with a series of calculated glances upon the computer’s screen.

Until now, Madrona has used an idiosyncratic language that her closest friends and family understand, but she has struggled to find a more universally accessible mode of communication. Thus, from all outward appearances, Madrona may seem impossible to connect with. But anyone who meets Madrona quickly realizes that this couldn’t be further from the truth. She is a force to be reckoned with: A bright and wise soul who has tirelessly sought any and all avenues through which to connect with the world and people around her.

This is Madrona’s second MyTobii—her first one was not fast enough to keep up with her thoughts, so she has yet to fully experience the joy of communicating freely. Madrona has been wishing for her new MyTobii for over a year now, and is eager to learn how to use it so she can start corresponding with her friends around the globe!

This blog is presently being co-piloted by Madrona and I, Melina. This is not the first time Madrona and I have collaborated on a creative project. I was her personal assistant during 2006 and 2007, during which time we collaborated to produce a group of remarkable acrylic paintings that were displayed in Boulder, Colorado in 2006.

From the moment I met her in January of 2006, it was crystal clear to me that Madrona is unbelievably gifted in many ways, and that her capacity to create and inspire are infinite. It has been one of the greatest honors of my life to help facilitate Madrona’s creative visions, and this blog is just the next step. Madrona, her family and I have discussed the best way to help her develop her own website, but we had been waiting for her new MyTobii so she could be actively engaged in the process. Now that her MyTobii has arrived, it is our hope that her website will become a venue for the first of many of Madrona’s expressions and imprints.

As Madrona’s partner and friend in this project, I will do my best to make sure that Madrona’s message and creative vision are conveyed in their purest form until she herself masters WordPress using her MyTobii.

Thank you for visiting!

Madrona (& Melina)