RICHLAND TWP, Allegheny County - Connie Jackson believes there's an upside to everything, even adversity.

Jackson, author of the book "Nothing Can Separate Us," says she learned that lesson through living and writing about what it took to survive the problems every parent dreads.

A resident of Bath, N.Y., Jackson will speak Wednesday at the First Presbyterian Church of Bakerstown

about

her autobiographical book and how her strong faith helped her face the loss of three of her six children to a heredity illness no one suspected would strike the family.

"It's really a story of the children, how they brought so much into my life and the earth angels who cared for them. I call (the caregivers') efforts 'grace in action,'" she said.

Jackson's two oldest children and her youngest, all robust as preschoolers, eventually succumbed to juvenile onset of Batten Disease, one of the more common, but still rare, neurodegenerative diseases.

Each of the three children became symptomatic by first grade. Karen lived until age 15, Jon until he was 25, and Dave until he was 28.Her other children, Miriam, Rick and Cathy are healthy, as are their children.Cathy Collier, who lives with her spouse and children in Mars, is a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Bakerstown.According to the Batten Disease Support and Research Association, the progress of the disease begins with deteriorating vision and seizures, progresses through personality and behavior changes culminating in mental and physical deterioration and death. There are four major forms of the disease: infantile, late infantile, juvenile and adult, with the adult onset type being milder and slower in its progression."You assume your kids are going to be healthy," said Jackson, whose three living children have been shaped by the family's unique experiences."The other kids were hurt," she admitted. On the upside, they've become "deep, thoughtful people, caring for others."Writing the book was a great help for Jackson and her children to come to terms with the fragility of a family under extreme stress, she said.Central to the recounting of the family's journey through the valley of death is their faith. Born a preacher's daughter, Jackson recounts how she drifted away from her religious upbringing for a number of years before reconnecting."What happened to me was a real encounter with the love of God," she said.Jackson wrote her manuscript in 2000-01 and it was published in 2002. A percentage of the royalties goes toward the Batten Disease Support and Research Association.Her book will be available for sale at the talk at First Presbyterian. It is also available on Amazon.com.She also works with bereaved parents whose children have been diagnosed with the disorder.