My name is Carlos Martínez, and I have two children with my partner, Priscilla and Carlos.

Priscilla doesn't have any disabilities, but Carlos, who was born with full vision, was diagnosed with Bilateral Retinoblastoma when he turned one year old. After severe treatments, including chemotherapy, radiation, and laser therapy, the result was the loss of his eyes. This is where our journey began.

We live in the City of Los Angeles, where Carlos has attended elementary, middle, and high school and university. From the beginning, he showed signs of great potential and tremendous abilities in independence, self-confidence, and academics. For these reasons, despite the fear of leaving your child in a new environment, we took the risk of enrolling him in a regular program.

I have closely followed Carlos's progress and have built the best possible relationship with my son. He has taken significant risks and challenges in his life, participating in a variety of programs offered not only by the Braille Institute but also by the Foundation for the Junior Blind (now known as Wayfinder) and community programs. As a result of his drive, we helped him participate in activities he enjoyed.

From time to time, I reflect on the skills we helped my son explore. He is an excellent pianist, was part of a Youth Mariachi in our community, and participated in the high school orchestra. He also won first prize in the first National Braille Challenge competition and was a choir member at the Braille Institute.

When my son participated in the preschool program, I joined parent support groups to understand my situation and its implications better. I realized that I wasn't alone, that other families with a child with a disability had not only grown emotionally, but also succeeded. I gathered information about my son's disability, accepted help from professionals and other parents, and learned how important it is to have the support of people who understand my pain. Because of these experiences, I firmly believe in the connection between parents.

I have been working as a Parent Mentor at the Blind Children's Center for 22 years, assisting families of blind or visually impaired children. I serve as an example and help normalize their experiences. My work with families is to help them understand that our children with disabilities are, above all, children. When I entered this field, blindness represented everything in my life, but now I can see it as just one aspect. I can see my son as a person and love him unconditionally. Thanks to all of this, I can provide other families with the skills and training that strengthen their abilities. I am a guide, facilitating the journey of others. 

As a Dad-Professional, I have also taken great risks and challenges. I helped found the group RAICES, a program focused on the needs of Latino immigrants and parents of children with disabilities. Weekly, I serve as a facilitator in a parent-to-parent support group, attend IFSP and IEP meetings, provide advocacy training and support for families, help staff understand the needs of families, attend community meetings, and serve on the board of several organizations, including the Birth To Five Vision Network, CAPVI, Fiesta Educativa, and Dicapta. Serving alongside great professionals like Carol Colmenares and María Victoria Díaz brings me tremendous satisfaction. I hope that Dicapta remains strong and continues for many more years, being a vital organization representing the voice of Latino parents in the United States. I am very proud of EVERYTHING we have achieved in terms of providing help to other parents to be more successful in their advocacy skills. It honors me to know that they can advocate for their children with visual impairments and other disabilities.

.