Joel Wagener, made an ice cream van, and 2 of his children with Down syndrome help out on the truck children and community, because he realized that the truck offered a future for them after they aged out of the school system.

"At every stage, with special needs kids, you look towards the future and what's their life going to be like in the next phase," Wagener explained. "It also becomes more responsibility of us as parents to say 'What can we do to give them worth and to allow them to add some value to society?' That's very important to us as the parents of Mary Kate and Josh."

Over the summer, the trio sold plenty of ice cream — and also served up some sweetness at a local school.

"There was a school here that was doing a special program for special needs kids, and they had contacted me and wanted me to bring treats to give out to the students there on an afternoon," Wagener said. "A little girl came up and she said 'Thanks for coming today; you made my day.' I didn't cure her autism, I didn't take care of the other issues in her life, but for one day for one moment, she had a great day.

"In my wildest dreams, I would have never sat around and said 'An ice cream truck, that's where I'm going to spend the rest of my life,'" Wagener said.

To make it even better, business is booming on the truck: Since starting in April, the family has sold more than 10,000 delicious treats in the Cincinnati area. Wagener is hoping to expand the business and help even more children with special needs while continuing his mission to help his children.

https://www.today.com/parents/dad-drives-ice-cream-truck-support-kids-down-syndrome-t235006