Eric Sadowsky News Today

To face. Im terrified. And triumphs, too. A kettle. Yes. Is that milk or juice . Milk. A fight for their kids that none of us can afford for them to lose. All the time that people told us he would never, well, he is. All the things they said he cant and he wont, well, he can and he will. Lives on the brink. Good evening and welcome to dateline. Im lester holt. All parents want a Bright Future for their children. What if the one thing that would help them get there is taken away. Dateline has spe...

To face. Im terrified. And triumphs, too. A kettle. Yes. Is that milk or juice . Milk. A fight for their kids that none of us can afford for them to lose. All the time that people told us he would never, well, he is. All the things they said he cant and he wont, well, he can and he will. Lives on the brink. Good evening and welcome to dateline. Im lester holt. All parents want a Bright Future for their children. What if the one thing that would help them get there is taken away. Dateline has spe...

To face. Im terrified. And triumphs, too. A kettle. Yes. Is that milk or juice . Milk. A fight for their kids that none of us can afford for them to lose. All the time that people told us he would never, well, he is. All the things they said he cant and he wont, well, he can and he will. Lives on the brink. Good evening and welcome to dateline. Im lester holt. All parents want a Bright Future for their children. What if the one thing that would help them get there is taken away. Dateline has spe...

Mom, eric meets with a language coach his own age paid for by his parents. and their conversation sounds like any other dinner date. >> thank you for asking! >> good morning, pam! >> good morning! how are you today? >> reporter: but the best news is erics mom has traded the dayhab for something even better. hes been selected for a competitive art program for adults with developmental disabilities. its called pure vision arts and is a program of the shield institute, a non- profit organization. e...

Thats about three dollars? >> right. >> reporter: nick donates the money he makes to the charity "make a wish" >> he had make-a-wish a number of years ago. and that was life-changing for him. >> oh thank you so much! >> not everybody works a paying job, but that doesnt mean they dont contribute to their community. >> for all your hard work. >> and right now were teaching him how to do that with something a simple as collecting bottles and passing the money on to charity. >> reporter: for eric, t...

>> at this point under the law, no. >> reporter: whats more, lewis says states split their medicaid dollars between the poor and people with disabilities. she says it all adds up to a system that cant take that much weight. >> i think that the programs are overstressed with the numbers. i mean its why we see wait lists. >> reporter: is that the bottom line, we just dont have the budgets? >> we have not addressed the need for long-term services and support in this country. >> reporter: and lewis ...

Running around the apartment where he lives with his mother, father, and sister. >> he was a beautiful toddler, running up and down the halls, chasing our labrador retriever. he was such a loving child. and so attachd to me. >> reporter: but when he was about 18 months old, mary noticed eric only had a few words. and hed become repetitive playing an old cassette tape again and again. >> and so that was the first hint. the pediatrician then said, "its time to get him looked at." i dont think he g...

Volunteer work. >> its simple things like setting tables, um delivering mail. they even have dog walking, delivering meals to the elderly. >> lets get to work everybody. >> erics doing excellent job working. >> while they dont do that much, its better than most and he has a mix of young people to be with and he has friends. >> reporter: but what eric and his mom dont know is that theres something even better right around the corner. >> reporter: coming up, a little light at the end of a long tun...

>> reporter: with no more teachers and friends to stimulate his language skills, eric is already losing some of the speech he gained in school. >> so she cant sit in a sofa. circle. >> sofa or circle? >> circle. so he, so she cant sit in a so, in a circle. >> in a circle. >> hes sleeping 12, 13 hours. kind of drifting in and out of his room, singing to himself a lot. >> from a distance, there -- talking to himself a lot, really regressing into his own world. a lot of withdrawal. ♪ >> reporter:...

Now. >> reporter: weve watched them struggle to find resources. >> hes falling apart. hes a mess. and i need help and i need help like two months ago. >> you dont feel like you can do it this morning? >> reporter: and battle to build a future for their sons. our story starts months before their worlds turn upside down on a warm summer evening in new york city where eric and mary are out on their weekly date. >> erics in the congo, nothing can go wrong-o. >> hes not afraid, not afraid, not afraid...