For several charitable organizations, the holiday season - like the rest of the year - is a time to help those dealing with some of life's toughest problems and providing solutions to those problems. In the week leading up to Christmas, the News Tribune is showcasing people whose lives have been impacted by United Way of Central Missouri partner agencies and supporters in the annual "A Christmas Wish" series.
Dylan Bock's Christmas wish this year is to enjoy the holiday with his mother and father, Vicki and Paul, in their Wardsville home.
That's because, earlier this month, Dylan spent several days in the hospital dealing with kidney problems.
When he was 3, Dylan began having major kidney trouble that resulted in the need for a transplant. Now 24, his kidney condition requires continual monitoring. Vicki and Paul know at some point he will likely face a second transplant.
"When he had the first transplant, they told us it would last for 10-12 years - and it's now 21 years since then," Vicki said.
Vicki and Paul said they were blessed when they got the chance to adopt Dylan and bring him into their family.
Dylan came into Paul and Vicki's life Dec. 15, 1995, when he was just 6 weeks old, after years of them wanting to become parents.
"We put him under the Christmas tree and took pictures," Vicki laughed. "They called us the first week of December and told us three families were interviewing for adopting this baby. The message we got was, 'We can't tell you for sure, but bring a car seat because this baby is going home with someone.'"
Because of his autism diagnosis, Dylan didn't always fit into school life and social situations. By the time he reached his senior year in high school, Vicki and Paul knew they needed to be looking at the next step for their son.
"They never tried to make him independent at school, and we wanted him to do something because he couldn't just sit at home 24 hours a day once he graduated," Vicki said. "They tried to get him into Kirchner State School, but the folks there said he was too high-functioning to go there - but yet he was too low-functioning to do other things at high school."
Eventually, Dylan was accepted to work at Capitol Projects on East McCarty Street in Jefferson City, where Vicki and Paul hoped he would be able to function independently as a productive member of the community.
For a few months after he started, Dylan was accompanied by an aide two partial days a week. Eventually, the aide was phased out, and Dylan reached a point where he could work full days each week as he became more comfortable in the workplace.
"He had to go in on his own, hang up his coat, put his lunch away and go to work," Vicki said. "At first, he had some issues. He's autistic, and he had some meltdowns and we had to go pick him up. There were times I would just cry because 'he's not going to be able to do this.' But, lo and behold, it wasn't long (before) he was doing the work he needed to do."
In fall 2016, Dylan became a full-time employee at Capitol Projects. He now works on an assembly line decollating book sets for Scholastic.
"I don't know what we'd do without Capitol Projects," Vicki said. "It's our sanity. We have no other children. He has cousins, but they are either way older or younger than him, so his social skills were nothing until he got to Capitol Projects. In the cafeteria, he has certain people he sits by, and they take care of him. The girls help keep him in line."
Dylan doesn't like loud noises and big crowds, but away from Capitol Projects, he likes to go horseback riding at Healing Horses Therapeutic Riding Program in Linn. The family has also done some traveling, including to Disneyland.
Even though Dylan doesn't generally exhibit his emotions, Vicki said, he continues to become more independent and seems happy. She and Paul are glad to have reached a place where they all have some type of routine.