Learning the Power of Belief

MISOULA, Mont. -- In the last year, Amanda Stoumbaugh has mostly kept to herself.
Growing up and attending Bonner Elementary and Sentinel High School, she would sing in the school hallways and speak whenever it suited her. In the spring of 2009, she moved into a group home. Suddenly, she was talking a lot less.
Only recently has Stoumbaugh - who has cerebral palsy, epilepsy, is visually impaired and gets around in a wheelchair - started to come out of her shell. Her mother, Rita Kearn, says it's important now, more than ever, for Stoumbaugh to learn to communicate her needs.
So, when Kearn learns her 19-year-old daughter has a speaking role in a production of "The Little Engine That Could," a play adapted from the popular children's book by the same name, she knows this is one performance she can't miss.