When we walked into that city council chamber, I never expected anything to change. I wasn’t there to speak; I was simply showing up to support funding for the service animal program. What I didn’t expect was that a quiet moment, one that seemed insignificant at first, would turn into something life-changing for my son and me. Nolan, my son, has always been quiet, speaking slowly and only to a trusted few—his father, me, and his service dog, Hunter.

For years, my husband Daniel had downplayed the challenges of staying home with a child like Nolan, believing it was simple compared to a traditional job. So when Daniel volunteered to stay home so I could return to work, I felt relief and pride at how easily he seemed to handle everything. But a strange phone call from my mother-in-law shattered that perfect picture—and what I learned next made me realize that everything at home was not as it seemed.