Kyle was born with CHARGE syndrome - deafness, developmental delays, coordination and balance challenges, and Autism is part of who he is - and although his journey has just begun, his experiences have made him who he is - and for Kyle that means never backing down from taking on the world.
Kye spent the first 115 days of life in the NICU. He couldn't breathe when he was born due to Choanal Atresia which was remedied in his first surgery by opening his nasal passages. Just to keep things interesting, he also had open heart surgery when he was the NICU to fix a hole in his heart and correct blood circulation. In the first few years, Kyle had several more surgeries to fix his breathing issues while sleeping and was placed on a feeding tube.
None of this seemed to bother Kyle much, and if anything, it showed the world that he’s a fighter and won’t give up.
With the majority of medical issues behind him, Kyle slowly began to attend preschool activities, started learning ASL (American Sign Language) at home with the support of the BC Family Hearing Services and learned to walk without support at 2.5 years old through weekly physiotherapy sessions.
By 5, he was attending The Provincial School for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing in B.C., and by 7 he started eating solid food orally. Once he tasted a world of new flavours there was no stopping him. He had his feeding tube permanently removed when he was 9 and his love for food and culinary delights was unleashed.
His new found freedom also allowed him to travel for the first time, visiting his grandparents in South Africa. This opened his strong interest in travel, culture and new experiences. His confidence continued to grow, and with the support from his Early Childhood Intervention programs, he learned to ride a scooter, paddle board, and go skiing.
It is these experiences that have been the inspiration of Kyle’s Kiosk, and a way for him to share his passion for flavour, travel, and the colours of the world around him. From the mala bracelets he loves to make to new tastes he encounters and recreates with our help, to endless other arts and crafts he comes up with to show us what he cares about. 
Kyle’s Kiosk is also a way for him to understand our world. From the small amount of money he earns and saves up for what he wants by working on his crafts, to meeting new people at the shops that sell his crafts. It’s a way for him to learn valuable life skills to become more independent, confident, and self aware, and how to relate with others and work with them.