The Great Bradini

Brady is a tiny six year old boy with Down Syndrome who lives at Aaron's internat. He is a very active and energetic little fellow. His DS has given him a tongue thrust that makes it difficult for him to swallow, but he manages.

Brady is part of the highest functioning group of boys at his internat.  The boys range in age from 6 to 18, and Brady is the youngest in his group. There are only 2 workers to take care of the 26 boys in his group. He is not free to run, play, jump or climb.  There are no swing sets, toys or books for him to enjoy.  Brady spends much of his time trying to escape the confines of his world.   Sadly, he never succeeds.

This is my husband Rob's tribute to Brady.

 

(Rob writing)


The Great Houdini was a famous Hungarian-American escape artist born in 1874.

The Great Bradini is an unknown Ukrainian escape artist born in 2004.

The Great Houdini, a.k.a. Erik Weisz, was famous for his ability to free himself from seemingly impossible situtations. He could usually unlock handcuffs without using a key. He could dislocate his shoulder joints so that he could wriggle out of straitjackets. He could free himself even when he had been locked in handcuffs and leg irons, boxed up in a crate weighted down with 200 pounds of lead, and then thrown into a river.

The Great Bradini, a.k.a. Brady from Reece's Rainbow, also takes every opportunity to free himself from his desperate situation. He will duck under the outstretched arm of a caretaker to get away from the dull existence she imposes upon him. He will dodge the grasping hands of the older boys in his group in order to make a run for the door. He will climb from his chair up onto the table trying to reach a visiting mother. Instinctively or cognitively, the Great Bradini knows that he wants a mother, and he's ready to climb every mountain in his path until he finds one.

The Great Houdini was an entertainer who liked to be the center of everyone's attention. He spent his life dreaming up and promoting ever more daring stunts in order to keep himself in the public eye.

The Great Bradini is also an entertainer, the center of attention for boys and caretakers alike in his group. He is always on the move, full of life and energy. As the other boys in his group sit quietly and watch, the Great Bradini bounces from one side of the room to the other, usually on his way to the door. The older boys catch him by the hand and spin him back into the common room a hundred times a day. The Great Bradini brings light and life to the otherwise dull existence of his group.

The Great Houdini had a loving wife of many years who helped him with his escape act. During one famous escape, she waited patiently for hours while he tried and failed to work his usual magic. Then she worked a miracle for him: she concealed a handcuff key in her mouth and slipped it to him secretly as she kissed him.

The Great Bradini also needs a loving person to help him with his escape. He needs someone to wade patiently through a sticky bog of paperwork. Then he needs that person to work a miracle for him by going to his town and passing him the keys that will unlock his handcuffs. The reward for this courageous, battleready soul will be love, immeasurable love-- "a good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over." The Great Bradini is not one to play "hard to get." He will quickly and completely devote his little heart to the first mama and papa who offer him theirs.

The Great Houdini had loving parents who brought him to America so that he could live in freedom.

The Great Bradini also needs loving parents to take him somewhere, anywhere, where he too can live in freedom.