Seventeen-year-old Marilyn Jayne Purcell is a happy girl, who loves the show Sesame Street
and enjoys playing baseball for Miracle League and Meaningful Life in the spring and fall. She
was born with GRIN-1 Mutation, which causes a spectrum of neurodevelopmental disorders that
include childhood onset epilepsy, developmental delays, movement disorders, and features of
Autism spectrum disorder. Marilyn has been a Rainbows girl since her early years. “I got
connected to Rainbows when Marilyn was a baby because she needed early intervention services
with speech therapy and physical therapy,” said Cheri, her mother.
In the beginning, the therapists that Sherri and Marilyn worked with were essential and helped
Cheri learned how to take care of Marilyn. “I really didn’t know where to start,” Cheri said.
“Rainbows gave me advice for everything. The staff at Rainbows, and the organization itself are
nice, caring, and knowledgeable about the services they provide. The changes I noticed in
Marilyn is that she is becoming more independent and participating well at school.”
Currently, Marilyn receives case management from her case manager, Karina Vargas. “Marilyn
is such a sweet girl,” said Karina. “It has been a pleasure serving her and her family on her
needs. It was a wonderful feeling when she was offered the IDD waiver services. This makes me
happy, knowing these services are long term for all of her needs. 
Marilyn and her mom stand out from my other families due to her mom’s creativity, and making Marilyn the most fun and eye-catching Halloween costumes that incorporate her wheelchair. Mom has shown photos and puts in so much dedication in them. You can tell Mari loves this and has so much fun.”
Marilyn has one older sister, Tori Purcell, who is 21-years-old. “Marilyn, Kris, (her dad), and Tori love to go outside and do a variety of outdoor activities, along with going out to eat at buffets,” Cheri said. “Shang Hai on East Harry St. is Marilyn’s favorite place to go out to eat.”
By Megan Bailey, Volunteer Writer
