I continue to hear from parents whose son or daughter is on the brink of finishing high school and entering the world of adulthood. Their stories are very similar, mostly saying “I don’t know what we’re going to do. We have been turned down for funding. I don’t want to quit my job and we can’t afford it. Yet without support for my child, I don’t know what else to do.”
The more stories I hear about, the more frustrated I become. Ensemble, along with many other groups have tried numerous approaches to get this message to government, and while they listen to us with empathy, there is no change with regard to funding.
Some people question how much responsibility the government should take on this matter and that families should be encouraged to concentrate on financial planning for their son or daughter’s adult life.
While this may have some merit, I still question the fairness of having parents invest enough money to support the entire lifespan of their son or daughter. It’s true that nowadays many parents invest for their child’s education and maybe for a wedding or graduation gift, but it’s not typical that parents invest for their children beyond that.
Who’s responsibility is it to provide enough funding to support individuals with a meaningful life? How can we convince government that their responsibility is much greater than what they are currently providing for?
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