Skip to content
NOWCAST WBAL-TV 11 News at 6pm
Watch on Demand
Advertisement

Isaac's aNORAble Home in Havre de Grace home serves as Airbnb, safe space for disability community

Isaac's aNORAble Home in Havre de Grace home serves as Airbnb, safe space for disability community
WHEN I FIRST VISITED ISAACS INNER HARBOR HOME A YEAR AGO, THIS RAMP WASN’T EVEN HERE. THEY’VE ADDED THIS AND SO MUCH MORE TO SERVE MORE. MORE FAMILIES IN THE DISABILITY COMMUNITY. SHE DID IT OKAY. IT’S HARD NOT TO SMILE AROUND THREE YEAR OLD DESTINEE, HER MOM SAYS HAVING A LITTLE ONE WITH DOWN SYNDROME COMES WITH SO MUCH JOY. IT ALSO COMES WITH A UNIQUE SET OF CHALLENGES. WHEN YOU DEAL WITH LIKE LIFE OVERALL BEING A PARENT. BUT THEN HAVING SPECIAL NEEDS ADDED INTO THAT. UM, YOUR WORLD BECOMES A LITTLE MORE COMPACT AND YOU NEED THE EXTRA SUPPORT TO HELP YOU GET THROUGH. SO DANIELLE ATTENDS A MONTHLY PARENT SUPPORT GROUP AT THIS BIG BLUE AND YELLOW HOME, ESPECIALLY FOR PARENTS OF KIDS WITH DISABILITIES. IT’S SOMETHING KIMBERLY MOSCOVITCH WISHES SHE WOULD HAVE HAD WHEN SHE FOUND OUT HER DAUGHTER, NORA, HAD DOWN SYNDROME EIGHT YEARS AGO. IT’S SOMETHING THAT I THINK EVERY PARENT NEEDS BECAUSE CAUSE IT CAN BE A BIT ISOLATING AT TIMES. KIMBERLY AND HER HUSBAND OPENED ISAACS HONORABLE HOME BACK IN 2022. NAMED IT AFTER THEIR DAUGHTER NORA AND THEIR SON ISAAC. IT’S AN AIRBNB WHERE PEOPLE CAN STAY AND HELP FUND PROGRAMS FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES. IT’S ALSO AN ART GALLERY WHERE THE MOSCOVITCH FAMILY HOLDS FREE PAINTING EVENTS FOR ARTISTS WITH DISABILITIES. MONTHLY SUPPORT GROUPS, AND MONTHLY RESOURCE HOURS WITH THE DOWN SYNDROME ASSOCIATION OF MARYLAND, HOSTED BY MARIANA SANCHEZ. I COME HERE EVERY SECOND MONDAY OF THE MONTH, UM, THROUGH 10 A.M. TO 5 P.M. BEING ABLE TO BE AROUND PEOPLE THAT TRULY GET IT AND UNDERSTAND US IS AMAZING. AND BY CREATING A SAFE SPACE WITH UNDERSTAND ING ISAACS INNER HARBOR HOME IS ALSO CREATING A SENSE OF HOPE THAT A MORE INCLUSIVE WORLD IS POSSIBLE. SOME PEOPLE DO HAVE CHALLENGES, BUT THAT DOESN’T MEAN WE CAN’T MODIFY OR INCLUDE THE WAY WE DO SOMETHING. SO THAT THEY HAVE A MEANINGFUL EXPERIENCE. AND IN EVERYDA
Advertisement
Isaac's aNORAble Home in Havre de Grace home serves as Airbnb, safe space for disability community
A special home in Harford County catering to people with Down syndrome has expanded.Thursday marks World Down Syndrome Day to advocate for the rights and inclusion of people with Down syndrome.A Havre de Grace couple is working year-round on inclusion with "Isaac's aNORAble Home" on Franklin Street.WBAL-TV 11 News first visited Isaac's aNORAble Home a year ago. It's an Airbnb, art gallery and resource center dedicated to the disability community.Over the past year, it has expanded by adding an accessibility ramp and so much more to serve more families in the disability community.It's hard not to smile around 3-year-old Destiny. Her mom, Danielle Charles, told 11 News that having a little one with Down syndrome comes with so much joy. It also comes with a unique set of challenges. "When you deal with life overall, being a parent and then having special needs added into that, your world becomes a little bit more compact and you need the extra support to help you get through," Charles said.Charles attends a monthly parent support group at Isaac's aNORAble Home, which opened in 2022. Kimberly Waszkiewicz and her husband named the house after their daughter, Nora, and their son, Isaac. The support group, geared especially toward parents of kids with disabilities, is something Waszkiewicz wishes she had when she found out Nora has Down syndrome. "It's something that I think every parent needs because it can be a bit isolating at times," Waszkiewicz, the founder of Issac's aNORAble Home, said. "Community has become such a priority in our special-needs family's life."Isaac's aNORAble Home is an Airbnb where people can stay and learn about life for people with disabilities. It's also an art gallery that hosts free paint events, funded by the Airbnb stays, for artists with disabilities.Isaac's aNORAble Home also holds monthly support groups and monthly resource hours with the Down Syndrome Association of Maryland, hosted by Miryana Sanchez."I come here every second Monday of the month from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.," Sanchez said. "Being able to be around people who truly get us and understand us is amazing," Charles said.By creating a safe space with understanding, Isaac's aNORAble Home also creates a sense of hope that a more inclusive world is possible."Some people do have challenges, but that doesn't mean we can't modify the way we do things so that they have a meaningful experience in everyday activities," Waszkiewicz said.Waszkiewicz encourages people to celebrate World Down Syndrome Day by wearing mismatched socks and blue and yellow, which are the colors for Down syndrome awareness.Isaac's aNORAble Home is raising money for families with special-needs children to have respite stays at the home. Tap here for more information on how you can help.

A special home in Harford County catering to people with Down syndrome has expanded.

Thursday marks World Down Syndrome Day to advocate for the rights and inclusion of people with Down syndrome.

Advertisement

A Havre de Grace couple is working year-round on inclusion with "Isaac's aNORAble Home" on Franklin Street.

WBAL-TV 11 News first visited Isaac's aNORAble Home a year ago. It's an Airbnb, art gallery and resource center dedicated to the disability community.

Over the past year, it has expanded by adding an accessibility ramp and so much more to serve more families in the disability community.

It's hard not to smile around 3-year-old Destiny. Her mom, Danielle Charles, told 11 News that having a little one with Down syndrome comes with so much joy. It also comes with a unique set of challenges.

"When you deal with life overall, being a parent and then having special needs added into that, your world becomes a little bit more compact and you need the extra support to help you get through," Charles said.

Charles attends a monthly parent support group at Isaac's aNORAble Home, which opened in 2022. Kimberly Waszkiewicz and her husband named the house after their daughter, Nora, and their son, Isaac. The support group, geared especially toward parents of kids with disabilities, is something Waszkiewicz wishes she had when she found out Nora has Down syndrome.

"It's something that I think every parent needs because it can be a bit isolating at times," Waszkiewicz, the founder of Issac's aNORAble Home, said. "Community has become such a priority in our special-needs family's life."

Isaac's aNORAble Home is an Airbnb where people can stay and learn about life for people with disabilities. It's also an art gallery that hosts free paint events, funded by the Airbnb stays, for artists with disabilities.

Isaac's aNORAble Home also holds monthly support groups and monthly resource hours with the Down Syndrome Association of Maryland, hosted by Miryana Sanchez.

"I come here every second Monday of the month from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.," Sanchez said.

"Being able to be around people who truly get us and understand us is amazing," Charles said.

By creating a safe space with understanding, Isaac's aNORAble Home also creates a sense of hope that a more inclusive world is possible.

"Some people do have challenges, but that doesn't mean we can't modify the way we do things so that they have a meaningful experience in everyday activities," Waszkiewicz said.

Waszkiewicz encourages people to celebrate World Down Syndrome Day by wearing mismatched socks and blue and yellow, which are the colors for Down syndrome awareness.

Isaac's aNORAble Home is raising money for families with special-needs children to have respite stays at the home. Tap here for more information on how you can help.