Reaching out starts the Foundation of an Asperger’s School in Charlotte, NC
Her help for kids was divine intervention
Veteran educator Karen Johnson says it’s hard to describe why she connects with children who learn differently.
This same unexplainable calling, she says, compelled her to e-mail a complete stranger in 2008 – Rev. Marty McCarthy, an Episcopal priest who she heard wanted to start a new school for children with social challenges in Charlotte, NC.
“…I am a bit bewildered as to why on several occasions your name has recently been brought up to me,” Johnson wrote. She sent the e-mail shortly after ending an eight-year teaching stretch at Manus Academy in south Charlotte, a school for students with learning barriers.
“The last person to mention you is a dear friend of mine who is Jewish. A Jewish friend being the third person bringing up the name of an Episcopal priest is way too interesting to ignore.”
Read more here. Charlotte Observer article 2.28.10 by Celeste Smith.
