Facebook Instagram Linkedin
Donate to JHR

Author: Noah S. Williams

Noah S. Williams is 13 years old and living an exceptional life. He was born a 26-week micro-preemie with a dismal prognosis for life. He is confronted with a multitude of obstacles daily, due to cerebral palsy, epilepsy, and visual impairment. Noah is a train wreck on paper, yet he is not that paper. Noah is a commissioned artist, endurance athlete, and public speaker. His work has been featured in the Autism Museum inaugural exhibition “Empower Being You” (May 2022), “The Body Has Its Reasons” (July 2022), and The Antidote Medical Humanities Journal of MCG (Vol.4, 2023). Noah is the main character in the published book series Adventures in Noahland. Titles include: Different But The Same; Noah Goes to Camp; and Noah the Junior Ranger. Noah is a principal in the 6,000 waiting documentary released in 2020. Noahland Art came about in a truly unique way. Noah attended a local art camp. It wasn’t a special needs camp, so they adapted and modified a few things for him to participate and be among his neurotypical peers. The kids wanted to paint their national flag on a particular project, as an idea of their own. Each child told me what country they represented — “China,” “Israel,” and “the United States.” When we got to Noah’s flag, one of the kids said “It’s Noahland!” And thus, Noahland Art was born. Welcome to his “country,” where being disabled doesn’t mean less than, it just means different. It is a place where he refuses to be defined by his disabilities, yet embraced for his uniqueness. Noah likes to travel, spend time with family and friends, make people think past textbook knowledge, do pranks, and indulge his mom in trying new activities.

Living the Hard Times Out Loud

This beautiful poem by “a mother on a mission to help families and caregivers navigate life with differently-abled kids” presents the powerful story of Noah Williams. Noah lives an extraordinary life as an artist, athlete, and public speaker, as he deals daily with cerebral palsy, epilepsy, and visual impairment. As Naomi’s words flow through the poem, they detail his lifelong struggle, and the love of people who join in his joy of living and help him navigate his days. “The best that is in him keeps unfolding into the spaces so many help open and hold.”