Care Providers

Ricky’s main care providers have been his parents, Rose and Jason Shapiro. Rose is his biological mother and Jason (author), his step-father, came into Ricky’s life when he was five.

When I first met Rose I thought she was one of the most upbeat and caring individuals I’d ever met, not to mention beautiful, intelligent and funny! Everyone that has had the opportunity to meet her can confirm that this isn’t just the ramblings of her number-one admirer, but should be considered factual. Her commitment to Ricky amazed me and was insight into what type of person she really was. Sixteen years later, her dedication and stamina still amaze me. Rose has managed to accomplish quite a bit in her life. Last year she received her MBA in Business from Sac. State. She is currently the business manager for a school in El Dorado Hills, CA called Guiding Hands. This is one of the schools Ricky attended in his early years. Rose donates most of her spare time volunteering to a cat rescue program and between her and her twin sister have been responsible for finding new homes for literally hundreds of feline friends. We have a five acre ranch in Shingle Springs, CA where Ricky gets to spend a significant amount of time among the many critters we’ve personally rescued over the past twelve years, including cats, dogs, horses, etc.

I met Rose in 1993 and Ricky soon thereafter. It was clear from the beginning that they were a ‘package deal,’ which was a complete non-issue to me. I was raised in a large family with a great set of values. As the oldest of five kids I had an early roll in care providing as my parents both worked, a lot. My mother was in the nursing field and my father had always been self-employed. His final company was a wheel chair van service that he had from 1977 to 2003. I had worked for him for about 7 years until leaving for college. I went to the Boston Architectural College for two years before realizing it wasn’t really what I wanted to do for a career. Next I had worked at Metropolitan State Hospital as a Mental Health Assistant. Working here exposed me to so many disorders, of which autism was a significant one. These were locked wards, it was the-buck-stopped-here type of  State run facility. I’d actually been assaulted on a few occasions by some of the patients, one of whom was nearly an identical match to Ricky in appearance and behaviors. This facility was warehousing at its worst and is the driving force behind my inhibition to placement for Ricky. Still searching for my place in life I then enlisted int the USAF, which is how I came to CA. I was hoping to fly but the military’s RIF (Reduction In Forces) and base closures hit and after two years of service I found myself needing to find a new career. Eventually, I did learn to fly. My aircraft of choice is called a paraglider and I’ve been fortunate to have teaching this form of aviation as my career.  A bit more information may be found on my website Air Addict Paragliding.