Special-Needs Business Profile: QCHARM LLC

Denise L. Meissner and her husband, Ken, are part-owners with Josh Bandes and David Levine of of QCHARM, LLC, formed in October 2006. The Meissners bring their Portable Visual Cueing System to the business, while Bandes and Levine, founders of EZBands.com, provide the "infractruture, financial resources, wristbands, charms, and the graphic designer," explains Denise Meissner.

"QCHARM, LLC provides a Portable Visual Cueing System to people who have special needs and to those who care for people with special needs," says Meissner. "The system involves presentation of symbols/icons on a charm that attaches to a wristband. Initial examples of icons are used to improve skill development related to: task preparation/performance/transition; schedules; changes in schedule; receptive and expressive communication; sensory modulation; socially appropriate behavior; safety education/reminders; and emotion identification/empathy."

The Meissner's son Adam has autism. "Once I realized that I could benefit from the skills and techniques used by our son’s team of professionals, I accepted that this situation would result in something greater than I could imagine," Denise Meissner recalls. "With the added help of a psychologist/marriage counselor, I was able to learn creative problem solving skills and techniques to help our family work through the lifestyle changes and to improve our connections with each other and with others."

"Because of the many business related demands, this is now my full time job," says Meissner. "I put my Occupational Therapy career on hold." She finds that the best thing about the business is "the ability to meet other people who share with us their own experiences, struggles, solutions, dreams, fears, and resources," while "without a doubt, the hardest part is trying to find time and energy to give undivided attention to my family, business partners, friends, customers, and myself while trying to learn how to run a business with as few errors as possible."

"Survival inspired me to identify a solution to making Adam’s visual cues more manageable and portable," Meissner says. "I discovered that he would attend to my bracelet and talk to me about the beach-themed charms. We would talk about things to look forward to and things to be careful of when we go to the beach. I realized I needed to put his visual cues on my wrist and/or his. My husband and I searched for a way to place charms on a band. Through an internet search, we discovered EZBands.com. We presented our idea to put our visual cues on their wristband system and they offered to form a partnership with us."

Meissner feels that QCHARM is already a success. "For me, success is based on the testimonials that explain how the person with special needs initiated communication/cheered for joy when they accomplished a task. Also, I measure success based on the caregiver’s feedback of how they saw their child 'light up' and how they were able to use cues that were easy to manage and that drew less unwanted attention from others. Finally, success is based on the versatility of our product…our system can be adapted and used to accommodate many diagnoses and age groups."

In addition to appreciating the product, QCHARM's customers appreciate its creators. "We have had contacts from other parents and the main comment we hear is that they are amazed we can have a child with autism, another child performing well in school and sports, a family resurrected, and a business to help others." The appreciation continues at home. "My older son has told me that, 'This is a really good idea, Mom. I mean it!'"

Would Meissner recommend that other special-needs parents make the leap into business ownership? "I recommend that other parents listen to their inner voice and find out how to best help themselves and then find out how to best help others. There are many ways parents can contribute to society (i.e. support groups, advocacy groups, public speaking, developing a product and forming a company in order to distribute the product, special needs programming, volunteering, etc)."

Looking ahead, Meissner says that "my plans for the future include (but not limited to): expanding our system’s charm line to meet the needs of those with other special needs such as head injury, stroke, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s; expanding our product line to include games, videos, publications, and various age-appropriate toys/educational materials; and evaluating the effectiveness of the QCHARM System and modify it to better serve the community (nationally and internationally)."

When did you find out your child had special needs?

We found out that our son Adam has autism through testing, process of elimination, and finally blood work. His hearing was within normal limits, but he would not answer to his name or even turn his head to a loud noise. His vision was functional, but he would not make eye contact and would focus on objects up close. He would sniff inanimate objects, shove food into his mouth until he would throw up, and clear shelves with his tiny hands. I filled in many questionnaires regarding his health, sensory issues, social skills, language. I took him to medical, child development, and neurological specialists for testing and evaluation. Ultimately, the blood work ordered by the geneticist revealed the chromosome #15 abnormality as the key factor for the autism.

How did the diagnosis affect your family?

Once the initial shock wore off, the diagnosis came as a relief because it meant we could get insurance coverage for Adam's therapy. However, it also presented our family with many challenges. As the primary caregiver, I had to make drastic changes to my career, social life, interactions with family, and personal time. Our family did go through a period of isolation from others as well as each other. The stress definitely pushed our parenting and marriage skills beyond their limits. After a while, I realized that his autism was actually a “ticket to resources” that other families would not have access to.

How is your child doing now?

Currently, Adam is 7 years old and is doing amazingly well. He is able to communicate and socialize with others; transition from one task to the next; tolerate very loud settings and many unexpected schedule changes; travel for extended periods of time; tolerate visitors and visiting others; make eye contact for extended periods; imitate socially appropriate behavior; participate in team sports; and to some extent adhere to safety precautions. As a result of Adam's progress, his 11-year-old brother, Kenny, is now able to participate in Travel Soccer, have sleep-overs, do homework in a relatively quiet environment, and have more of his parents' attention.

What advice would you give to other parents about raising a child with special needs?

My advice is to make the choice to be thankful and acknowledge that your child will open your eyes to see opportunities you never imagined. Enjoy the unique qualities and perspectives your child offers.

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