Gio’s Journey

12/25/2025

The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear!

Merry Christmas and happy holidays! Thank you for being on this journey with us 🫶🏼

We hope you can unplug, be present, and enjoy the little things today, because the little things is what this journey is all about ❤️🎄


Stephanie Howie

10/28/2025

The boys received an incredible gift from some pretty amazing people. I always joke that we “won” the genetics lottery when we received all of the boys’ diagnoses. But really what it has given us is a connection to this incredible community that we didn’t know existed beforehand. These are the people who give more of themselves than they take in this world. The ones who work hard, then go out and work even harder to put smiles on our boys’ faces. Faces they never knew before the day we received our gift. It makes me feel good knowing there are people out there that genuinely care about others and make it known that they see us fighting in the dark.

Thank you for this beautiful play house that our boys will love making memories in for their entire childhood. What you do for these kids means the world to us. Thank you for always being there for us, each one of our boys, and giving us the opportunity to receive this gift.

Stephanie Howie

09/11/2025

This is what a supportive school district and community looks like. 🙌🏼 thank you Plymouth Public Schools and Plymouth SEPAC Special Education Parent Advisory Council for advocating and being on this journey with us!

Stephanie Howie

🌟 September 7th is Duchenne Awareness Day 🌟

Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) is a rare, progressive genetic disorder that primarily affects boys, weakening their muscles over time. While there is currently no cure, there is so much hope in the research, support, and community that continues to grow stronger each year.

We have local Duchenne warriors too. Out of the 15,000 people living by with Duchenne in the US, two are currently in our school system!

❤️ By spreading awareness, we can amplify voices, support families, and push forward for better treatments and a future filled with possibilities.

💚Let’s stand together—for strength, for awareness, and for every child and family impacted by Duchenne.

👉 Learn more.
Jett Foundation

Share this post.
Start a conversation.
Awareness is the first step toward change.

09/07/2025

This weekend has been a hard one. I missed seeing friends from the Duchenne community at a local WDAD event that I look forward to every year. But the reality is, sometimes we are just not ok and feel more broken and burnt out. It’s 1,000% ok to miss the huge events for self care. Our mental health is so important for our families and the warriors in this community. Instead of being surrounded by friends and people who have become family to me I gave myself the grace to not be ok. I called family and asked for help with the kids. I laid in bed and I cried, I didn’t clean the house, I didn’t put the dishes away, I let myself feel all the things I usually fight back, I didn’t think about conquering the world or learning about genetics, I ate a box of double stuff Oreos and didn’t think about what pants would fit me, I listened to angry and sad punk rock music, I made random art that was not planned and super dark, and an acrostic poem with the help of AI because I suck at words. And today… I feel GREAT. Giving myself the grace to have a really dark sh*tty day to feel all the feels was exactly what I needed. To all the warriors out there, I see you, you are not alone, and I hope you can give yourself the grace to have a dark sh*tty day once in a while to get your strength back as well💚


Stephanie Howie

08/06/2025

Clinic time! We will be having some mommy and Gio time for the next two days that will be filled with all things Duchenne health. He will see multiple doctors, and will receive multiple tests. Wish us luck and send little man lots of love his way 💚💪🏼

06/24/2025

What an incredibly special, fire safety filled 5th birthday for our Gio ❤️ thank you to every person that shared our story, shared pictures with Gio and sent birthday wishes. He was so excited all day long and I can’t express in words how much I appreciate each and every one of you.

A huge thank you to the Plymouth Fire Department for giving Gio the special VIP tour at station 6 today. That experience will be a core memory that all of us will treasure for a lifetime ❤️

Plymouth Fire Department

06/19/2025

SHOW US YOUR FIRE SAFETY! 🔥🧯🚒

On Monday, June 23, Gio turns 5! Birthdays are a pretty big thing when you are a Duchenne warrior. Gio loves all things fire safety. Fire extinguishers, fire alarms, smoke detectors, fire hydrants… In honor of his birthday we want to surprise Gio by filling our social media and his day with all things fire safety. Please send us photos/videos, tag us in your own fire safety pics, or any other cool fire related things you want to share with Gio 💚🔥🧯🚒 The more the better! Let’s make this the best, Fire safety birthday for our little dude 🙌🏼

🧯 SHARE 🔥 SHARE 🔥 SHARE 🧯

04/28/2025

What an incredible event! Thank you for putting together an inclusive event that also helps fund our community! Thank you to all the musicians that played! Our family loves music but it’s not always the easiest thing to go to an event with three young boys and two of them being on the spectrum. Yesterday that changed. This event was made specifically for our family. We got to listen to great musicians while sharing our love of music with our boys. Gio was in absolute heaven, he doesn’t say much but yesterday he kept saying “let’s go party! Rock and roll!” 😭Jameson looked over at me at one point and says “mommy, I can feel the music inside of me” ❤️ these are the things we want to share with our kids and this event allowed us to do that. There was a sensory area for when they felt overstimulated and other cool down spots away from the crowd. The best part is there was no judgement and our boys could just be their awesome selves. It gave me some serious comfort looking around the dance floor and seeing other AAC devices being used and every person there understanding why my kids were stimming and enjoying themselves in their own way. Inclusivity at its finest. Mom and dad got a nice gift at the end when we won the silent auction item that was donated by ❤️ Music is what drives our family and now we have a future date night in the books with VIP passes to see the 2026 St Patrick’s show. (Fun fact, was Jameson’s first concert.)

03/10/2025

To say this an empowering experience is an absolute understatement. I feel empowered, hopeful, scared, but most importantly I feel like I can make a difference for Gio’s future. I am contributing to change for a disease I never thought I could make an impact on. First two of four meetings this afternoon and the last two, tomorrow. Wish us luck!
You can help Gio to reinforce our message to Congress from home. Send a message to your House and Senate Members today and urge them to continue making Duchenne and Becker patient care, public health, and research a top priority. ❤️💪🏼🇺🇸

https://engage.parentprojectmd.org/2025-adcon

03/09/2025

And I’m off! For the next three days I will be on Capitol Hill with a group of incredible individuals advocating and fighting for advancements to benefit all affected by Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. ❤️💪🏼