If you’ve ever had the joy of meeting Josh Lockwood-Wewer, you quickly realize he’s someone special. Towering at over six feet tall with the gentlest heart imaginable, Josh brings warmth, humor, and pure joy into every room he enters. His mother, Beth Martinko, describes him best: “He has the sweetest soul on the planet. He’s just a giant teddy bear.”
At 34, Josh is autistic, an avid storyteller, and a lifelong Disney fan—so devoted that his first words, at age eight, were lines from his favorite Disney movies. His family quickly learned to ‘speak Disney’ alongside him, sharing his language, his laughter, and his wonderfully unique way of experiencing the world.
Josh is a Participant with SequoiaSD, one of the trusted programs within the AssuranceSD family. His story reflects the shared mission across all of our brands: empowering individuals with disabilities to live independently, pursue meaningful goals, and thrive through personalized support.
Before Self‑Direction, Life Felt Limited
Before Josh discovered the freedom and possibility of self-direction, his world felt small, heavy, and uncertain.
In 2013, Josh lost his father, and he struggled to find happiness for a long time afterward. Beth remembers the moment everything shifted: “His dad passed away. It’s like, ‘Okay, now… what are you going to do with your life? …Who are you going to be? What do you want to be?'”
But Josh didn’t know. And neither did she.
Josh had already aged out of school, so there was no daily routine, no classmates, and no built‑in community. And without that additional support, Josh drifted into a long stretch of loneliness and stagnation. Beth describes those years plainly: “He was pretty depressed and, like, hanging out at home with nothing to do and nowhere to go and, you know… not sure if anything would ever be cool again.”
The only thing that sparked joy was the promise of a future Disney trip. “He would literally just wait for the next Disney trip. Like, that’s all that he had to look forward to,” Beth remembers.
Discovering Self-Direction
When Josh’s family moved to California in 2015, they were new to the regional center system and didn’t yet know what supports existed—or which ones might help. What they quickly learned was that the traditional services offered to Josh didn’t fit who he was. They made him unhappy, anxious, and disconnected from the world around him.
“He would sit in day programs texting me the entire time, begging me to come early,” Beth recalls. “It was worse than nothing at all.”
Respite services didn’t help, either. Workers that Josh didn’t know would arrive for long, uncomfortable shifts that didn’t support him in any meaningful way.
“They would watch him just basically sit there and [they would] stare at him,” Beth explains. “And [Josh was] like, ‘Why are these people in my house? What are they doing?'”
Nothing truly supported Josh in being Josh. He wasn’t growing, exploring, or enjoying life. He was simply enduring it.
Then, almost five years ago, everything changed. Beth attended a webcast about self-direction, and for the first time, she saw a path forward that made sense for her son.
“I went to the webcast and realized, oh my gosh, this actually gives him the ability to be who he wants to be, not what other people want him to be.”
Through SequoiaSD’s Self‑Determination Program, Josh could finally choose what he wanted to try, where he wanted to go, and—maybe most importantly—who he wanted to do it with.
A Life Filled With Passion
Today, Josh thrives in programs that reflect his passions. Instead of being placed in activities that don’t fit, he now spends his days doing things he genuinely loves.
Beth explains one of the biggest differences: “We’ve been able to hire people that love Disney and [who] think it’s so cool to hang out with someone that knows every line to every Disney movie ever.”
With self-direction, Josh chooses what he wants to do and the people he wants to do it with. His activities match his interests perfectly.
Josh attends theater classes at the Segerstrom Center. He also participates in a professional voice‑acting program in Hollywood. Movement is part of his routine, too. He’s involved in several physical exercise programs, including Pilates, where he looks forward to seeing Frankie (his instructor’s service dog) and getting lots of puppy kisses.
Across all these activities, the people around Josh genuinely enjoy him. They appreciate his humor, his creativity, and his deep love of Disney. Many of them share that love, which makes every outing feel comfortable and fun.
And the growth is clear.
Beth has watched him become more confident and resilient. “He started out very fragile… and I think what self-direction has brought him is a series of little challenges… that he’s really shared his strength and his ability to withstand,” she says.
Her conclusion is simple: “He’s stronger. He’s more secure. He’s okay.”
Stepping Into His Own Life
For Beth, the heart of self-direction was always about helping Josh build a life that truly belonged to him. As she explains, “My big goal in the whole thing was for [Josh] to feel like he had a life with or without me so that, you know, when I’m gone… he would miss his mom, but he wouldn’t miss his life.”
She expected that kind of independence to take many years. But the shift came much sooner than she imagined. “Really like a year into it, we started to see him, you know, reaching out to other people and enjoying doing things with other people and then just telling me about it. So that’s like the biggest milestone.”
As Josh began choosing his own activities and building relationships with people he trusted, he also grew emotionally stronger. Beth remembers how different things were before: “He started out very fragile like he could he could easily bend and easily break at the slightest little thing.” But with new experiences and small challenges, handled without Beth stepping in, he began to change.
That transformation has brought Beth a deep peace. “I would say that’s the biggest surprise. And also, one of the biggest blessings, knowing that he’ll be okay.”
The impact has reached their whole family. With Josh more confident and independent, the constant pressure on Beth eased. “It’s just given us the ability not to have life be 101% around how he’s feeling and what he needs next. It’s given us that sense that we can just all be our own selves and enjoy what’s happening with him.”
Holiday Traditions Filled with Magic
The holidays are a special time for Josh, and his family has built traditions that bring him joy year after year—most of them rooted in the Disney magic he loves so much.
One favorite is their annual Breakfast with Santa in Downtown Disney. Beth explains, “They have elves there… the waitresses dress up like elves… he loves the elves.” Christmas carolers visit each table, and Josh always asks if he can sing with them. Santa gives each child a teddy bear, and Josh brings that bear on adventures throughout the year before “retiring” it when the next one arrives.
They also attend the Disney D23 holiday event in Hollywood. Even in a crowd of 1,500 people, something magical always seems to happen. Last year, a cast member approached them to say, “Daisy Duck would like to see Josh at 5:30.” The performer had known him for 20 years and mimed all the places they’d met before—a moment Beth describes as “super special.”
And of course, there’s Disney on Ice, a tradition Josh has kept nearly his whole life. “He’s been going to Disney on Ice for 32 years of his 34 years,” Beth says. He writes notes to the skaters and often receives a meet‑and‑greet, something he looks forward to every holiday season.
These traditions bring Josh joy, connection, and a sense of belonging—exactly what the holidays are meant to be.
Becoming a Published Author: Meet Captain Peanut
One of the most exciting parts of Josh’s journey has been discovering his love for storytelling. Disney didn’t just inspire his imagination… it helped him learn to talk and write.
Characters stayed with him longer when he spoke to them, so he kept trying. Writing followed the same path. “His writing was all about, you know, writing notes to the characters so that… he could share with them what they meant to him,” his mom explains.
Over the years, Josh began creating his own stories—often inspired by Disney plots but filled with characters and ideas from his own imagination. “He’s probably written over 200 little short stories so far and is still going strong on those,” Beth says.
Through self-direction, one of those stories became something even bigger.
Last year, Josh partnered with a nonprofit to publish his first book on Amazon. The book is titled, The School Yard Crisis: A Captain Peanut Adventure, and sharing it with others has become one of Josh’s greatest joys.
Josh has attended several fairs with his own booth, proudly selling copies and signing them for readers. “He loves autographing for people,” Beth says. “It’s his work, and he should be proud of it.”
For Josh, becoming a published author wasn’t just a dream come true—it was proof that his voice matters, his ideas matter, and his stories deserve to be heard.
Advice for Others
For families who are unsure about self-direction or feel overwhelmed by the idea of starting something new, Beth’s message couldn’t be clearer. “Just totally go for it. Like, it’s life‑changing. It’s a miracle program. And you don’t know it until you get into it.”
Beth encourages parents to trust the process, even if they’re unsure at first. Self-direction gave Josh room to explore, try new things, and discover what truly made him happy—and she believes other families can experience that same transformation.
Her advice is to start, even if you don’t have all the answers.
Know Someone Like Josh?
Josh’s story is one of many across the AssuranceSD family of brands. If you or someone you know has used self-direction to build a life of independence—whether through employment, community engagement, or personal growth—we’d love to hear it.
Nominate a Participant or share your own journey at PremierFMS. Your story could be the next spotlight that inspires others to dream big.