Meet Gerry, wife and working mom - in her own words "not so much a person who is a failure, as a person who is fundamentally intolerant of, and disappoined in, my lack of superpowers." But more than superpowers are needed as Gerry navigates her roles as parent of a teenager with Down syndrome, as friend to a priest derailed by traumatic brain injury, and as daughter to charming, wise, always-in-control Nola, who is beginning a heartbreaking descent into dementia. Throughout Gerry's journey with mother, son and friend, and sprinkled with the ups and downs of everyday life, Gerry learns lessons each has to teach us all, finds spiritual resilience and a gentle dose of humor as she endeavors to answer the question she always relied on; What Would Nola Do?
Always mom first, now a grandmother as well, Dr. Geralyn Anderson Arango is a Professor of Education, Emerita at Holy Family University in Philadelphia, PA. Gerry writes, teaches and consults on topics pertaining to intellectual disability across all phases of life. She is the host of "Our Parallel Paths: A Future for My Loved One with a Disability… and For Me!" a podcast produced by Networks for Training and Development.
Gerry lives in Wilmington, Delaware with her husband Michael, and hopes that their imminent retirement won't make them weirder than their cats.