Wendy is the manager of @bluestacksnf in Donegal. This is her story... #WeAct “Everybody that comes in says there’s just a feeling. It’s vibrant, it’s energetic and it’s positive. Outside the front door we have worry pots where the kids leave their worries. So when they come in, they come in free. They come in positive. They come in in a good space. It’s lovely. I was involved in the very early days; I was a friend of the couple who set the place up. I was involved volunteering initially with the fundraising for the Bluestack Challenge which started in 2002. And then in 2005, I had my fifth child. She was born healthy, she got a cold and ended up severely brain damaged, from what was bronchiolitis that went undetected. I had my own business at the time, and then of course everything changed due to her diagnosis and needs. I came here to work full time in 2008. Most of us here have that lived experience. As a parent I’ve learned more from other parents than any professionals I’ve dealt with, so being the catalyst and creating the opportunity for parents to come together is really important. I have five children. I spent the whole time in the car with the four boys, dropping them to birthday parties, sleepovers, play dates, piano lessons, football. My daughter didn’t go anywhere. Never invited to a birthday party. Never invited to a playdate. Not included in any mainstream community activities, she went nowhere... until she had here. We have a unique ethos in here, we call it the Bluestack Experience. We’re just about fun. We’re about a positive experience. For me and for every other parent, our children with additional needs are our absolute world. And if you can hand them over with peace of mind, knowing they’re going to be safe, going to enjoy themselves, you can go away and have the real value of that respite. Your mind is free. You come back ready to go again. When I come here with my daughter and she runs in the door, and she doesn’t want to come home afterwards, that’s how I know we are doing a good job. We always say ‘just look at the children’s faces, that’ll tell you everything’. And it does, it just lifts your heart.”