Meet Anna & Remi
The Founder and the inspiration The Divergent Village
Anna Ford is a late-diagnosed Autistic and ADHD mother to her beautifully divergent 5-year-old son, Remi, who has Level 3 Autism. With a background in early childhood education and years of hands-on experience as a professional nanny, Anna blends deep personal insight with professional knowledge to support other families navigating the world of autism.
When Remi was first diagnosed, Anna found herself overwhelmed, heartbroken, and completely lost. Despite a lineup of therapists and doctors, no one could showed her how to actually LIVE this life — how to parent in a world that wasn’t designed for neurodivergent families. Searching for real, local support from families who truly understood, she found nothing.
So, she built it herself.
The Divergent Village was born from Anna’s lived experience and her unwavering belief that no parent should walk this path alone. She created a service that helps families understand therapy options, set up supportive home environments, advocate for their children, and connect with trusted professionals and other neurodivergent families.
Anna knows the invisible weight of trial and error. She knows the fear, the judgment, and the heartbreak — but also the fierce love, the small wins that feel like mountains, and the joy of finding your village.
Anna is known for her deep compassion, unwavering support, and inventive approach to navigating the world of autism. With a heart that truly understands the unique challenges families face, she brings a calming presence, practical wisdom, and a fierce dedication to walking alongside you — not ahead or behind, but right beside. Her lived experience as a neurodivergent mother gives her an unmatched ability to empathize, adapt, and advocate with authenticity.
Raising her autistic son has shaped Anna into someone remarkably stoic and determined. It has ignited in her an unshakeable passion for truly understanding autism and fiercely supporting children who are so often misunderstood by the world around them. Her journey has not only strengthened her resilience, but deepened her commitment to helping other families feel seen, supported, and empowered.
Anna also lived her own childhood and early adulthood undiagnosed, which made life incredibly confusing and difficult. She knows firsthand what it feels like to be misunderstood, unsupported, and expected to fit into a world that didn’t make sense. That experience drives her belief in the power of early support, advocacy, and equipping families with the right tools. She’s made it her mission to ensure autistic children are seen, celebrated, and set up to thrive — and that their families never feel as alone as she once did.
Whether you're at the beginning of your journey or somewhere in the messy middle, Anna’s thoughtful, caring nature and creative problem-solving make her an invaluable ally in helping your child — and your family — flourish.
Why “The Divergent Village”?
The name is a tongue-in-cheek nod to the horror film The Village — a story about a small, isolated community living in fear of the unknown, clinging to rigid rules to protect themselves from imagined monsters.
For many special needs parents, that metaphor hits a little too close to home.
Raising a neurodivergent child can feel like being dropped into a real life horror film: terrifying meltdowns, unpredictable days, and a world that doesn’t speak your language. All while friends, family, and strangers stare from the sidelines, offering unhelpful advice and quiet judgment.
Anna chose the name to acknowledge that experience — and to laugh at it. Because sometimes, embracing the chaos and laughing through the madness is the only way forward. And in this Village, there are no monsters — just misunderstood heroes learning to write their own rules.
At The Divergent Village, Anna is the person who sees you when no one else does.
She’s here to say, “You’re doing great.”
Because while autism may change the journey,
it never takes away its beauty
