Ontario stay-at-home dad overwhelmed by ‘compassionate’ response to financial struggles
At a time when so many families are struggling to get by, compassion and empathy can go a long way.
When Jason Ladouceur, 41, first spoke about his family’s financial struggle to raise awareness about the rising cost of living, he says he never expected it to touch people in the way it has.
“My daughter’s smiles will keep me going the rest of my life, but just hearing from other people that you are doing the right thing or feel like I’m doing the right thing — just the compassion and the sympathy is the biggest part,” he says.
Ladouceur first spoke to Global News in late November about the impact the rising cost of living was having on his family as a stay-at-home dad taking care of two young children with intellectual disabilities.
Since then, the Barrie, Ont., dad has received multiple messages from people looking to help financially and share their own experiences and words of encouragement.
Ladouceur takes care of two children aged nine and 10 with intellectual disabilities and a wife with a respiratory illness.
While he used to run his own renovations company, he became a stay-at-home dad several years ago to take care of his 10-year-old daughter, who has severe autism requiring 24-hour care.
“A long time ago, it used to be hard for me (because) I always felt like I was constantly explaining my story to every new person I met,” he says. “I always felt that I had to pour my heart out to get my story out, to say this is why I can no longer work, this is why I’ve got to be at home looking after my family.”
He says hearing the response from people who read his story has been overwhelming, also coming at a time when they are also dealing with his youngest son experiencing multiple seizures.
“The more people that reached
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