Sisters: when blood Is thicker than everything else
Gretchen Roth couldn’t wait to finally buy pink baby clothes when the doctors told her she was having her first baby girl after two boys.
“I went straight from the doctor’s to the store and bought pink booties,” Roth said. “I was so excited.”
Five years later, she had another baby girl.
Kendall and Riley have grown up like any two sisters -- fighting over the remote control, gushing about crushes and supporting one another through their accomplishments.
The two, 17 and 12 respectively, have already achieved so much. Their shelves are lined with trophies and medals -- only a preview of what each hopes to achieve in her lifetime.
But it hasn’t always been easy.
When Kendall was growing up, her parents noticed she wasn’t sitting up or talking as quickly as the other kids were. The doctors explained Kendall was just a bigger baby and that development can often vary between children.
As a school teacher, Gretchen wasn’t convinced. It took six years and 13 different doctors before Gretchen and her husband Jim finally got a diagnosis.
Kendall has autism.
Undoubtedly, there were times when the Roths’ questioned whether all of their hopes and dreams for their child could be fulfilled.
They were.
Kendall won a gold medal in bowling in Special Olympics in 2010, among numerous other awards.
“It’s cool to see them all high-fiving each other,” Riley said.
Though Riley is only 12, her debut album “Love” was released in April 2011. She donates a portion of her sales to Special Olympics, to give back to the organization that gives so much to her sister.
Kendall and Riley have different dreams, different interests and different gifts.
Though there have been bumps and struggles along the road, sisterhood is about supporting each other through the trials as well as the victories.
And that is just what these two sisters have done.
