We are a 501 (c) 3 certified non profit foundation as of August, 2013. "The Michelle Kuri Foundation aims to support those caring for non-verbal and non-ambulatory patients. Often, those involved are family members, but include medical personnel (doctors and nurses) as well. The Foundation is named for my daughter, who suffered from severe cerebral palsy until her death at age 37 in 2008," says Dr
. Nawrocik. (A native of Mexico City, Mexico, Dr. Nawrocik and her family have made San Antonio [and the Stone Oak area] their home since 1987.) She says, "My experience helped me define the three key support areas of the Foundation. 1) Education (where the Foundation will begin its work) is needed. Those in the medical field which serve these patients--doctors, nurses, and technicians—need to know how to better what non-verbal patients are trying to say to them regarding their medical needs because they cannot speak; communication and speaking are different concepts. Communication, from non-verbal patients, can be demonstrated by faces of pain, signals of stiffness in their bodies, etc., yet many doctors cannot know how to interpret these signals because they are not their caregivers. Therefore, the foundation will begin by educating those in the medical field to look for signs and signals and most importantly to respect and listen to what their parent or primary caregivers are telling them. 2) Emotional support is a major need because of dreadful stresses which families suffer. 3) Financial help is often necessary, since many patients age out of financial aid sources." The Foundation will address these key needs through a number of programs, according to Dr. Nawrocik, who earned her PhD in General Psychology and is owner of San Antonio-based Positive Futures, LLC.
