Our Story

Eric and Christen Freund are cofounders of Hope on the Hard Road Inc. College sweethearts, they have been married for 26 years and live in North County San Diego with their son and daughter. 

Their family’s journey with special needs began when their daughter was diagnosed with Autism and developmental delays a week before her fourth birthday. After their daughter’s diagnosis, they spent many years trying to balance family life with all of the needs of doctors appointments, therapies, IEP meetings and more; and found themselves feeling overwhelmed, isolated and discouraged. Over time, with the love and support of family and friends, faith, resources, and community, they began to thrive in the midst of their circumstances. Realizing that other families in the special needs community were experiencing similar circumstances and had similar unmet needs, a desire to find a way to help other families began.

In 2015, seeing the need to increase support for families of children with special needs at their large local church, they helped to form a collaborative leadership team of parents, special-ed educators, and staff, to create a special needs ministry program that would implement a variety of supports for children, their families, church staff and volunteers, and give insight into the designing of special needs’ classrooms, sensory rooms, and family live-feed rooms. Along the way their were many more heart felt projects like these.

Then in 2019, Eric and Christen’s passion and dedication toward helping other families in the special-needs community find connection, encouragement, and hope, lead them to cofound the 501c3 nonprofit Hope on the Hard Road, Inc. 

Our Vision

For a family raising a child with special needs, life can be difficult. There are many storms to weather and struggles to address, and we often feel isolated and alone due to the nature of our circumstances. Families have a need to connect and be encouraged, to gain resources, and to find hope as we walk down what can be a very hard road at times. Hope on the Hard Road nonprofit was created for this purpose. We are dedicated to encouraging and connecting families through events and resources designed to help support the unique needs of the individual, the family, and the community. Our vision is to grow a thriving community, where families with children of all ages with special needs can feel connected, be encouraged, and find hope for the road ahead.