Gardenia Coleman and Tiffany Hasty were honored by SC Vocational Rehabilitation

Tiffany Hasty is a young woman now. An impeccably groomed and stylish young woman. A working woman with her own bank account and her own apartment.

“She’s extremely proud of those things,” said Tiffany’s mother, Katherine Dow. “And I’m extremely proud of her.”

The day little Tiffany Hasty was born, her doctors predicted quite a different forecast.

“My baby wasn’t expected to live through the night,” said Dow, her voice still quivering with the memory. “She came three months early and weighed only two pounds and 13 ounces. After she made it through the first night, other complications kept coming, one after the other.”

There was fluid on the baby’s brain, and the fluid led to seizures. A shunt was inserted to drain the fluid, but Tiffany’s development would be severely challenged, and she was partially blind.

According to her doctors, she would forever be totally dependent on nursing care. As a feasible solution, the best for all concerned, institutional placement was suggested.

Katherine Dow would not hear of it. “Oh no!” she said, “Not my baby!”

Tiffany Hasty did not walk until she was three years old. Sometimes she displayed a temper. Always, she was easily frustrated. But there were other times; times when Tiffany was willing to please and was industrious. She also appreciated monetary reward.

Katherine Dow decided to accentuate the positive. She saw to it her little daughter went to school where Tiffany was placed in special ed classes.

“I wouldn’t have known a thing about Vocational Rehabilitation had the school counselor not told me,” said Dow.

The SC Department of Vocational Rehabilitation became the ray of sunshine that Katherine Dow always knew was out there – somewhere.