For most new parents, bringing home baby is one of the most exciting, exhausting times of their lives. There are so many challenges— sleepless nights, mounds of laundry, and an obsessive hand-washing routine that would put any pediatrician to shame. But when serious health issues develop, it’s enough to spiral any new mother into a state of paralysis.

Closet Serves

Not so with San Diego resident and mother of two Rachel Ackerly. When Rachel’s daughter Cecily began to experience health problems from an undetermined genetic syndrome shortly after her birth, Rachel and her husband Brien resisted the urge to retreat.

“We immediately began to scour the Internet, in between doctor appointments and therapy sessions. What we found was a lot of negative information,” Rachel says, adding that she often felt overwhelmed.

As Rachel and Brien worked feverishly to find answers for their daughter’s seizures and gastrointestinal issues, Rachel’s parents, Mervyn and Cecily Short, surprised the family with a room makeover for Cecily.

“I think it was our way of trying to support the family. We wanted to find some way to help,” says Mervyn.

Rachel says, “What they created was such a source of peace for our family. It became our space to escape.”

The Ackerlys found the gesture so moving that they resolved to offer the same thing to other families coping with a sick child.

“When you have a child who is not well, many families find that they spend a lot of time in that child’s bedroom. So we started a charity where we provide room makeovers for kids with developmental disabilities,” Rachel says.

Cecily’s Closet is a nonprofit organization that was founded to not only provide qualifying families with a decorative room re-do that offers a peaceful refuge, but also to serve as a hub of information, “spreading stories Of hope and love,” instead of fear and doubt.

It’s also a place where families can find recycled goods that insurance companies may not cover.

“We’ve had to purchase so many things for Cecily and [have] spent so much money on things that were not covered by insurance. So, we’re trying to be a source for people who have looked in their closets and found things they no longer need that could be helpful to a family [currently in the middle of a crisis],” Rachel says.

Paying it forward in this way is nothing new to the Ackerly family. Rachel says that Brien’s parents, now deceased, both set an example of charity and community involvement throughout their lives. Rachel’s parents have joined the young couple’s efforts to found and operate the charity by literally picking up a paintbrush and getting to work.

“We enjoy doing it, investing the time. There has already been such an outpouring from the community,” Mervyn says.

Rachel’s days are full. She works as a part-time web consultant while Noah, 4, and Cecily, 2, nap in the afternoon, and then settles in to work on Cecily’s Closet matters after the children are tucked soundly into bed for the night.

“I can’t help thinking about all the single moms who are out there with a special needs child, struggling without the support of a spouse, not to mention an extended family like I have,” Rachel says.

The Ackerlys say that despite having been founded only a year ago in March 2010, the foundation Is “snowballing” with online nominations for developmentallychallenged kids whose families could use some help.

“We’re small, but we’re growing.

One of the appeals of this foundation, I think, is that we are a charity in San Diego that directly benefits San Diego residents,” says Rachel, adding that Cecily’s Closet is currently wrapping up its tenth room makeover.

“We would not be able to do what we’re doing without some local businesses. Jon Ray of PaintGreen has been an incredible ambassador for the charity by providing all the paints, and Emily Dolton of Inside Emily Dolton’s Head has been an incredible help with her designs.”

As Cecily continues to work with a variety of doctors in occupational and physical therapy sessions, Rachel and Brien will continue their mission to brighten the lives of children with special needs throughout San Diego.

Rachel says, “Our goal is to make Cecily as happy and comfortable as possible. Basically, we’re a typical family. We’re big believers in hugs and kisses and optimism. We work on a task each day and take each day as it comes.”

To learn more about Cecily’s Closet, to make a donation or to nominate a family for a room makeover, visit www.cecilyscloset.org. You can also learn more about additional services at www.insideemilyshead.com and www.paintgreen.com.

Kerri S. Mabee is a mother of three and frequent contributor to San Diego Family Magazine.