Download - The Echo October 2011 Volume 10, Issue 2
Calendar of Events:
Oct 6, 9:00 am, Newly
Diagnosed Workshop at
PFC Resource Center,
Room 414
Oct 10, 5:45 pm,
HFA Support Group at
Dorothy Spainhour
Center
Oct 10, 6:30 pm, Parent
Education Meeting at
Dorothy Spainhour
Center
Oct 11, 11:30 am,
ALC Support Group at
Little Italy Restaurant
Oct 19, 9:30 am,
ABC Support Group at
PFC Resource Center,
Room 414
Oct 25, 11:00 am,
Board of Directors Mtg.
at PFC Resource Center
Oct 27, 9:30 am,
Preschool Support
Group, PFC Resource
Center, Conf. Rm. B
Heidi Choice
Editor
October 2011 Volume 10, Issue 2
Board of Directors:
October 10, 2011
Chris Nealy, MSW
Autism Society of North Carolina, Training Specialist
CEO and Co-Founder of Rock the Spectrum
“Social Interactions in Young Children with Autism”
Learning Objectives:
1. Recognize your child’s social and communication needs.
2. Learn how structuring your home can help you
communicate with your child.
3. Identify ways to organize playtime to be fun learning
opportunities.
For your convenience, free respite care is
available on site through Community Based
Developmental Services. Please contact
Cynthia Billops at 488-5820 or 488-4584 to
reserve your space at least 24 hours in
advance. You may leave a message to
reserve your space. Please be aware that
you will not receive a return phone call.
~Monthly Parent Education Program~
~For Your Calendar~
4th Vera Bradley Autism Awareness Bingo
October 14, 2011, St. Patrick’s Catholic Church, Village Drive, Fayetteville
Fayetteville TEACCH Center Conference
October 12—14, 2011, FAHEC, Owen Drive, Fayetteville
The Echo
October 10, 2011, 6:30 pm
at the
Dorothy Spainhour Center,
223 Hull Road, Fayetteville
2011 ASNC Triangle
Run/Walk for Autism
October 8, 2011,
9:00 am
Moore Square, Raleigh
2012 ASNC
Annual Conference
March 30-31, 2012,
Hilton University Place,
Charlotte
Chris Leacock, President
Anna Finch, Vice President
Lydia Short, Secretary
Gwen Scott, Treasurer
Warren Aronson
Cynthia Billops
Dr. Debra Gillum
Brandy Mello
Staff:
Director of Programs and
Outreach:
Heidi Choice
Program and Outreach
Assistant:
Mary Potter
Page 2 October 2011
The Echo
Support Groups:
ASCC Monthly Support
Groups provide an opportu-
nity to share, learn, and
connect with others. Each
group reflects an area of
focus; however, all parents,
caregivers, guardians, and
professionals are welcome
to participate in all of our
support groups.
The Autism Breakfast Club
(ABC) Support Group will
meet Wednesday, Oct 19 at
9:30 am at the PFC
Resource Center, Room
414. Focus: Families of
children with ASD up to age
12.
The Autism Lunch Club (ALC)
Support Group will meet
Tuesday, Oct 11 at 11:30
am at Little Italy. Focus:
Families of adolescents and
adults with ASD.
The High Functioning Autism
(HFA) Support Group will
meet Monday, Oct 10 at
5:45 pm at the Dorothy
Spainhour Center. Focus:
Famil ies of ch i ldren,
adolescents, and adults with
high-functioning autism or
Asperger’s.
The Preschool Support
Group will meet on Oct. 27
at 9:30 am at the PFC
R e s o u r c e C e n t e r i n
Conference Room B. Focus:
Families of young children
with ASD ages 1-5 years.
The Stedman Support Group
will meet on Monday, Oct
10&24 at 6:00 pm at the
Stedman Recreation Center.
Focus: Families of children,
adolescents, and adults with
ASD. For more information,
please call JoAnn Bass
(910) 705-5360.
Become a member of the Autism Society of
Cumberland County and help us sustain our
programs. Your $10 annual membership fee will
ensure your voting privileges in matters discussed
during Parent Education nights, eligibility to serve
on the board and on committees, priority selection
for scholarships, as well as the continuity of all
programs offered by the ASCC. You will also receive a free 8”x 4” “Autism Awareness”
car magnet as displayed in the picture box. Please mail your $10 membership fee to
the ASCC, 351 Wagoner Drive, Suite 410, Fayetteville, NC 28303 today. Thank you!
Please support
The Second Annual Ben Lucero Memorial
Golf Tournament
Friday, October 28, 2011
The Bayonet at Puppy Creek Golf Club
Hosted by the Ft. Bragg DPTM Training Division
All proceeds from this event are donated to the Ben Lucero Scholarship Fund to help
families of the ASCC’s Camp Sunshine Summer Developmental Day Program. In the
2011 season, five families benefitted from the Ben Lucero Scholarship Fund. Four
families received a partial scholarship, and one received a full scholarship.
To register, please contact John Ferjerange (910) 643-6452.
… and then …
~Membership Drive~
~Support Parents Needed~
Are you a parent of a child diagnosed with autism? Would you like to provide
emotional support to parents who are new to the ASCC family? If so, please call (910)
826-3004/3005 to learn more about this rewarding program. Thank you for your
consideration.
~Ben Lucero Scholarship Fund~
Page 3 October 2011
The Echo
We went to a meeting last week to discuss the therapy needs of my older son. It was one of those meetings where you walk in
already knowing that no matter what you say, they're just not going to approve it. It's very frustrating as the mother of a child with
disabilities knowing that there are ways to help your child but that help is not available to you due to insurance coverage- or lack
thereof, finances, or availability of trained professionals in the area. Parents of typically developing children will never know the
heart ache and the battles we have on a daily basis just to have something that resembles "normal" life.
Therapy isn't supposed to be forever. In fact, a good therapy program will end at the point where the individual or family is able to
at least cope with the difficulties facing them, even if some of those challenges never fully go away. It should be noted also that
there is no need for a therapy or intervention if the individual or family is not bothered by the issue. I find it is much more
common that parents of children with disabilities are, more often than not, failing to receive interventions and waiting ridiculous
amounts of time on waiting lists to get services than asking for services that aren't necessary.
It's a difficult balance determining when to push and when to accept. For children with autism spectrum disorders, we never fully
know what they are capable of doing. At the meeting we attended, the person running the meeting insisted that we don't "make
goals that are above his mental age" in opposition to making goals based on his chronological age. In some ways this makes
sense to me. For example, I don't expect my son to be driving at the age of 16 like his typically developing peers. The thought of
that is very frightening actually. I'm practical, if my son ends up collecting carts at Wal-Mart, I'm going to be one very proud
parent!
On the other hand, I do not believe it is asking too much to have a ten year old make his own bed, help sort laundry into "colors"
and "whites," or pick up his toys. I was told that I was asking too much of him and that at a mental age of 3, children aren't
capable of doing these things. I wanted to take out the photographic evidence I have of him doing these things of which he isn't
capable. I thought it best to allow her to continue with the verbal insensitivity, however, since she didn't really want to see the
truth anyway and was bent on just cutting services.
I understand that testing children is the only way to get tangible, measurable evidence of the need for help and that retesting is
the only way to prove that therapy actually helped. Children on the spectrum however, don't do well on these standardized tests
for a number of reasons. The main one being that they are verbally loaded. How can you answer a question if you can't
understand what is being asked of you? Even the quote "non-verbal" tests require that you understand the question or the
directions. Another not so well noted factor in testing children with autism is that many of their skills are uneven. They might
only understand certain types of language and do well identifying colors and shapes but not understand what you mean when
you ask them to point out the "happy" face. Many of the standardized tests don't break the skills down into individual scores.
Rather, the average of all the different areas are taken which much of the time makes a child on the spectrum appear lower
functioning on paper than they are in real life. Unfortunately many people underestimate what they are capable of based on test
scores.
Not every child on the spectrum is a genius and I get really frustrated when someone compares my child to a special they saw on
TV or a movie they watched and assume my child is exactly like the person they saw. Some treatments and some therapies help
one child on the spectrum but do not help the next child with the same label. Not all of us have the same resources either so
what one child is able to receive, might not be available to another one. For example, we can't afford a personal nanny to work
with our son one on one the way the great Temple Grandin's parents did. It is best to remember the saying: "If you've met one
child on the spectrum, that's just it, you've met ONE child on the spectrum."
I take issue however, in letting testing be the end all factor in helping my child. If I never ask my child to be a ten year old, how
will I ever know if he's capable of doing it? If I only ask him to be a 3 year old, how can I ever expect him to progress or know
what other talents might lie beneath the surface? I love my son today, as he is, and I will always love him. Even if he never does
progress past the age of 3, I will love my child. But I'm certainly not going to let test scores and labels determine my child's life.
How well would we all do if our lives were based on the scores we received on the advanced physics exam? What if that score
was seen as all there was to who we are? Temple Grandin, Ron Kaufman, Sean Barron, Tito, and Daniel Tammet are doing so
well in their adult lives right now because their parents only set goals based on test scores and labels, right? Wrong!
My child is a person. He's not an IQ score. He's not an autism label. He's not a number. He's not paperwork. He's not a client or
participant. My child is Darrian and I think he's awesome! The only limits placed on him should be the ones he places on himself.
Destiny Sandoval is the proud wife of John Sandoval and mother of 3 kids, two of whom have autism spectrum disorders. She moved to Hope Mills,
NC, 4 years ago in search of better resources and information about autism. She has a history of teaching ballet but is currently dedicating time to
her own children. She enjoys sharing stories and being a support for other parents who have children with special needs.
~ Goals ~ by Destiny Sandoval
The Echo Page 4 October 2011
$20 and $25 packages will be offered at the door. 20 regular games, 1 bonus game, and 20 door prize drawings
A fun-filled evening of Vera Bradley products and door prizes
Concessions will be available. Children are welcome, but they must be paid participants.
~Join Us for A Fun Evening~
4thAutism Awareness
Vera Bradley Bingo
Friday, October 14, 6:00 pm Doors open at 5:00 pm
St. Patrick’s Catholic Church
2844 Village Dr. Fayetteville, NC
Proceeds will benefit:
For more information: 910-826-3004/3005 Not affiliated with Vera Bradley, Inc.
The Echo Page 5 October 2011
~Newly Diagnosed Workshop~
~Rhythm and Rhyme Story Time~
The Cumberland County Public Library’s Hope Mills Branch will offer a Rhythm and
Rhyme Story Time for exceptional children and their families on Saturday, October 15,
10:30 am — 11:00 am. For more information about this new event, please call Vicki
Sheeler at 425-8455, ext. 225.
The ASNC Regional Office in Fayetteville will hold an Open House on Tuesday, October 4, 2011, 9:00 am —
12:00 pm at the Partnership for Children Resource Center, 351 Wagoner Drive, Multipurpose Room. Please
note also that the ASNC School-Age Social Skills Group has resumed for the fall. For more information, please
call Steven King at (910) 864-2769.
~Autism Society of North Carolina—Regional Office in Fayetteville~
~Did You Know?~
Research shows that participation in family-centered early intervention services during the first years of life has
substantial positive effects on the cognitive development, social adjustment, and overall development of
children with developmental disabilities. These services to eligible children are federally mandated under Part C
of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA). Upon referral to an early intervention
program, providers work with families to develop an Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP), and each family is
provided a service coordinator to advocate at their request. (NASET, Vol 7, Issue 30, August 2011)
~TEACCH Conference~
The annual Treatment and Education of Autistic and Communication-related handicapped Children Conference
is scheduled to be held from October 12-14, at the Fayetteville Area Health Education Center on 1601 Owen
Drive. For more information about the upcoming conference, please call the TEACCH office at (910) 437-2517.
Due to a time constraint, ASCC scholarship information was disseminated via our mass email, and scholarships
have been awarded. If you would like to be added to our mass email listings, please call the ASCC office at
(910) 826-3004/3005.
We are excited to offer a new monthly workshop opportunity for parents of children newly diagnosed with
autism spectrum disorder. Amy Perry, Parent Advocate for the Autism Society of North Caroline (ASNC), will
present the workshop. It will be held at the Partnership for Children Resource Center, Room 414, every first
Thursday of the month beginning October 6, 9:00 am — 12:00 pm. Registration is required to attend this
workshop. Please call the ASCC office at (910) 826-3004/3005 for more information and to register.
351 Wagoner Drive, Suite 410
Fayetteville, NC 28303
Tel: 910-826-3004/3005
Fax: 910-868-5881
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: www.autismcc.org
“Supporting Individuals Within The Autism Spectrum”
Winner of the Autism Society of
North Carolina affiliate of the Year
Award—1996, 2002, & 2003
Make checks payable to:
Autism Society of Cumberland County
351 Wagoner Drive, Suite 410
Fayetteville, NC 28303
Name:
Address:
Amount of Contribution:
Please remember the ASCC with your tax-deductible charitable contribution.
~Donations~
October 2011
Return Service Requested
The Autism Society of Cumberland County
is an affiliate of the Autism Society of
North Carolina.
Mission Statement:
The Autism Society of Cumberland County
is committed to providing support and
promoting opportunities which enhance
the lives of individuals within the autism
spectrum and their families.
Vision Statement:
The Autism Society of Cumberland County
strives to create a community where
people within the autism spectrum and
their families receive respect, services,
and supports based on individual
differences, needs, and preferences.
Disclaimer:
The Autism Society of Cumberland County
does not take any position regarding
studies of ASD, nor endorse any particular
form of treatment, intervention, or
therapy. This newsletter allows us to pass
along current information in the field of
ASD to our families and organization
members.
Funded In Part By:
~Membership~
Autism Society of Cumberland County
351 Wagoner Drive, Suite 410
Fayetteville, NC 28303
Name: ________________________________
__ Parent/Caregiver __ Professional
__ Sibling __ Individual with ASD
Address: _______________________________
_______________________________
Telephone: _____________________________
Email: _________________________________
Annual Membership Categories:
__ Local ASCC Membership only: $10.00
(Make your check payable to: Autism Society of
Cumberland County)
OR
__ Combined State & Local Membership: $45.00
(Make your check payable to: Autism Society of NC)
__ Yes, I would like $10 to be returned to
the ASCC for local membership fees.
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