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

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~

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 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 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



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:


is committed to providing support and

promoting opportunities which enhance

the lives of individuals within the autism

spectrum and their families.

Vision Statement:


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:


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



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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the echo october 2011 volume 10, issue 2

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