Ann Romney delivered a message of hope and optimism Wednesday morning at the grand opening for a new theraupetic playground at All Children's Hospital in St. Petersburg: "Our little ones are our responsibility," she said. "It is our responsibility to take care of them and make sure their lives have joy."
"No matter our limits, it is important to know joy," Romney, 63, told the crowd, which included parents of children with serious disabilities and medical conditions.
Ann Romney's visit to St. Petersburg was her first public appearance since she made a heartfelt, well-received speech Tuesday night at the Republican National Convention in Tampa. Romney offered a personal story of her life and love for husband, Mitt, in support of his GOP nomination for president.
Wednesday morning, her remarks were just as anecdotal, with Romney revealing her own struggles with multple sclerosis, an incurable disease that attacks the nervous system.
"I know someting about physical therapy, and I know something about joy," Romney said, noting that she used horseback riding as physical therapy when diagnosed with MS at age 49. Her comments also revealed a comfort for public speaking that seemed to belie a more corporate public demeanor.
She told the crowd how "grateful" she was for her visit and repeated some sage advice she received from an 11-year-old patient moments before walking on stage: " 'Let your light shine," Seth Morano of Sarasota told Romney upon meeting her. "You're going to be great."
Her appearance at the RNC Tuesday and at the ribbon-cutting Wednesday showed a softer side of Mitt Romney and the GOP presidential campaign. A small number of GOP leaders attended the event, including U.S. Rep. Bill Young, Florida Reps. Jim Frishe and Rich Glorioso, and St. Petersburg Mayor Bill Foster.
While Ann Romney spoke in St. Petersburg Wednesday morning, her sons, Ben and Craig, campaigned in Palm Harbor, speaking to a breakfast crowd of Florida delegates.
The Romney family's candor at both events seemed to charm people. "I wish every day we could have a grand opening day at the playground," Seth declared when the speech ended and the children could play uninterrupted.
Benefits of Therapeutic Playground
Seth has cerebral palsy and is in a wheelchair. His parents, Jennifer and David Morano, said that Seth will be using the slides and swings at the new playground for his physical therapy. Jennifer drives Seth from their Sarasota home to St. Petersburg for his physical therapy.
Allie Ribner, his physical therapist, said the children can improve motor skills and benefit from sensory stimulation at the outdoor playground. The playground – with its soft surfaces and cradled swings – also enables young people with disabilities to enjoy recreation with their siblings and other family members, which often is denied to them because of their limitations.
David Morano lifted his son from his wheelchair and carried him up the steps of a slide and placed the boy in the chute, as Seth squealed with joy. Seth's 9-year-old brother, Noah, played nearby.
"We're here for Seth. We're part of his world here," David said. "This will be a place for him to enjoy, to have fun."
Story Behind the Therapeutic Playground
The playground was developed though fundraising efforts and donations of credit union members. The Credit Union National Association (CUNA), the League of Southeastern Credit Unions and the National Journal Group partnered to develop the therapuetic playground "as a leave-behind project." CUNA has a history of developing projects that benefit communities where National Party conventions are held.
Ryan then went on to slam the Independent Payment Advisory Board as a rationing system, a message that Mitt Romney also delivered in a podcast earlier today. “In addition to that,” Ryan continued, “he puts a board of 15 unelected, unaccountable bureaucrats in charge of Medicare — who are required to [cut] care in ways that will lead to denied care for current seniors.” http://hotair.com/archives/2012/08/18/ryan-medicare-should-not-be-a-piggy-bank-for-obamacare/
I suspect that the liberal posters here are either jealous of success or are receiving govt support and don't want to lose it. Or both. Anyone here willing to trade their health and take on MS and breast cancer if they could get a lot of money? Who among you has spent two years volunteering to work for your church? Who among you is giving $3.5 Million a year to charity? Who among you would be willing to give all of a sizable inheritance (or lottery winnings) to a charity? Please tell us why you criticize success.
My children, and my grandchild, will have nothing but a voucher that will become worth close to nothing, bupkis, nada. I could sit on my keester and say "no worries" for (1) me and my (2) wife, as I am already a recipient, and she is over 55. But my kids and your kids will get screwed by Romney/Ryan's voucher substitution for true Medicare, and my grandchildren your grandchildren, or your neices and your nephews, will get screwed by Romney/Ryan's voucher substitution for true Medicare. So, unless you care only about yourself, and unless you don't give a tinker's damn for the next generation, and the generations to come, you should not allow the GOP to get away with the lie that they are "saving Medicare," because all that they are saving is the name "Medicare."
The way I see it, I am already getting screwed and my children and grandchildren will definitely get the same treatment if we allow Obama another four years of making sure that happens. I would rather have a president who has proven beyond a doubt that he knows how to run a business and balance a budget. I know, you want to make the handouts permanent and keep the debt running up and passed on to our kids. You are quite clearly looking out for yourself and want the next generations to pay it back.
Sorry, Mr Sprat, but Medicare is NOT a handout, and millions of Americans today, and tens of millions over the next several generations of Americans, will be healthier in their old age because of this essential program. My mother and father counted on Medicare, and they did not consider it any handout; they paid their contributions over the years, and the government program helped them in their old age. I am now a Medicare recipient as well, and I want to make sure that my parents grandchildren, and my grandchildren, will also have Medicare to help when they reach old age. Medicare is extending a hand, Mr Sprat, not a handout as you like to instead call it.
You won't get what you think you were promised if we continue on the current path - you should be glad to know that someone realizes that and has the courage to tell you and the intelligence to propose a plan to save it for you and future generations. Everyone knows all entitlements and/or 187 welfare programs (and all govt spending) are out of hand and we can't keep borrowing a trillion dollars every year. So Ryan comes up with what could be a reasonable reform proposal that might save the program - and we do not have to pass the bill before we can see what it does and does not provide. By the way, Ryan never proposed a voucher program to the exclusion of the standard Medicare plan, it was proposed as a choice. Obamacare doesn't make healthcare more affordable, it just allows/forces taxpayers to pay more to insure non-taxpayers. http://factcheck.org/2012/08/outdated-attacks-on-ryan/
http://therealrevo.com/blog/?p=82380
“So my expectation is that there will be some popping of the blister after this election, because it will have been such a stark choice. Where Republicans refuse to cooperate on things that I know are good for the American people, I will continue to look for ways to do it administratively and work around Congress. And a good example of that is, for example, making sure that homeowners around the country can take advantage of these historically low rates and refinance. There’s no reason Congress can’t move forward and at almost no cost to the federal government really boost the housing market and our economy. But if Congress won’t do it, we’ll keep on looking for ways to get that done without legislation.” ....I KNOW what is good for the American people.... .....I WILL CONTINUE to work around congress.... ......we’ll keep on looking for ways to get that done without legislation. Really? Is that what the DEMOCRATIC system is all about?
http://swampland.time.com/2012/08/30/what-he-knows-now-obama-on-popularity-partisanship-and-getting-things-done-in-washington/#ixzz25HX2ED00
The Ryan scheme is called "STARVE THE BEAST", and the radical right designed this process and strategic objective decades ago; the right wing starts to de-fund essential programs by diverting revenue flows to other competing parallel systems, and at some point the original program - namely, TRUE Medicare - collapses by lack of critical mass. Then the Starve-the-Beast plan leaves only the "private & for-profit sector" competing plan, which leaves all future generations, my daughters and sons, and my nieces and nephews, and my grandchildren and grand nephews and nieces, and all of the future generations of posters reading this thread, receiving a measly voucher which cover less and less of their health care costs, and all along the private insurance companies make obscene profits and their executives receive huge bonuses. In other words, Ryan is hoping that his little scam will not be realized by those who actually care about future generations. He will not leave true Medicare undamaged, and that is his actual plan, eliminate true Medicare as we all know it.
http://www.factcheck.org/2012/08/ryans-vp-spin/ Also, you should go to PolitiFact.com, which has helpful analyses: http://www.politifact.com/wisconsin/statements/2012/aug/29/paul-ryan/did-barack-obama-break-promise-keep-gm-plant-open/ http://www.politifact.com/wisconsin/statements/2012/aug/28/paul-ryan/ryan-says-incomes-went-down-nationally-under-obama/ http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2012/aug/29/paul-ryan/paul-ryan-said-president-obama-funneled-716-billio/
Here are some irrefutable facts: 1. We have $16 Trillion in debt to repay, with interest. 2. So far, this president has borrowed over $1 Trillion a year since taking office, running up our debt another $5 Trillion in 3 1/2 years. 3. 23 Million Americans are unemployed or underemployed. 4. The majority of the population believes they are not better off today than 3 1/2 years ago. 5. If we do nothing to save Medicare and Social Security, they will not exist in the future. Do we really want four more years of unresolved problems that he promsed to overcome during his first four years.
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