03/21/2026
When he was 6 in 2018, Raibron Manuel began speech therapy to become more confident in his communication skills. Since then, Raibron's mom, Marlene, has seen significant growth in her son's willingness to engage and communicate with others.
"He is working on building longer, more complete sentences and continues to grow in sharing his thoughts and ideas," Marlene said.
Raibron's vibrant personality is on display during his speech therapy sessions. He loves to role-play, which is one way to practice conversations.
"Raibron's therapy was not about reaching age-appropriate performance or meeting milestones," Speech-Language Pathologist Marissa Copley shared. "He didn't find those things meaningful."
So, Marissa changed her approach to therapy with Raibron. She met him where he was and worked on his confidence. They addressed clear-speech strategies, practiced conversations with other therapists and kids in the center and used a high-tech, speech-generating device as needed.
Raibron has been discharged and is maximizing his potential, but his family knows he can always return if he needs more assistance!
We are proud he boosted his skills while improving his self-esteem and confidence, too.
