"He wasn't to live," said Norma Yorde. "That's the whole thing, he wasn't to live." When Norma and Paul Yorde's only child was born with severe developmental disabilities, this death sentence from the medical community was all that was needed to motivate the young working class couple into rejecting institutionalization and finding another way to care for their son. Raising money door to door to start a small group home for their son Donnie and children like him, Paul and Norma unwittingly began a program that would serve thousands of people with developmental disabilities for over half a century. Good Shepherd Communities now has two missions: to ensure that people with developmental disabilities live full, productive and fulfilling lives with dignity and to provide hope for parents like the Yorde's who have a child with disabilities and don't know where to turn. Today, Donnie Yorde is 64 years old and living in one of the many Good Shepherd Communities started by his parents. In this episode of Visionaries, viewers will meet Donnie and become a part of these communities that have provided so much hope and fulfillment for so many families.
