I raise my eyes to say Yes

A Memoir Written by

Ruth Sienkiewicz-Mercer and Steven B. Kaplan

Ruth Sienkiewicz-Mercer was born in 1950. She has never spoken a word, never walked, never fed herself, never combed her own hair. Trapped in a body that is functionally useless, her mind works perfectly.

This is her story. Absorbing and hearbreaking, it was written with the collaboration of Ruth's friend, Steven Kaplan. Without any self-pity, Ruth recounts her early childhood with a loving family and some happy years at a rehabilitation center, then virtual incarceration at the notorious Belchertown State School in Massachusetts.

After sixteen years she was released, to enjoy a life of purpose and personal triumph.

I Raise My Eyes To Say Yes will permanently alter the reader's perception of the severely disabled. But it also expresses larger truths, and demonstrates the extraordinary power of love, thought, and the human spirit.

website by D.Sabato