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Looking for Cool Summer Activities?
Programs for kids are offered in the new fully accessible facilities at the Sports and Fitness Center on the Disability Empowerment Center campus centrally located northeast of Sky Harbor airport in Phoenix, 5025 E. Washington Street.
Kids Corner
2012 Summer Kids Kamp
Click these links to download the Kids Corner Registration form and the Kids Corner Assessment form
For questions or to register please contact Jessica Amato at 602-386-4285 or e-mail at jessicaa@abil.org
Check Your City's Parks and Rec
Swim classes for kids with special needs are available at City of Phoenix Telephone Pioneer Pool located at 1946 W. Morningside. Courses include:
- Angelfish - This course is designed to teach water safety and swimming skills to people with special needs.
- Therapeutic Water Exercise - This course is specially designed to teach water exercise to enhance fitness for older adults or those with arthritis or special needs.
Class schedule: http://phoenix.gov/sports/2012tele.pdf . For questions, please call their office at 602-534-6587.
- Family camps through Daring Adventures, an outdoor adventure based recreation program for individuals with and without disabilities. This program is integrated throughout the Camp Colley program for inclusive outdoor recreation opportunities. Also available are River Rampage or River of Dreams. Go to the web page http://river-of-dreams.com/ or contact Mark Stodola at m_stodola@hotmail.com or 602-402-0523 for information.
Free Class from NAMI Arizona
Family to Family is a free, 12-week course for families, partners and friends of individuals with serious mental illness taught by trained NAMI family members and caregivers of individuals living with mental illness. The course examines the emotional responses families have to the trauma of mental illness; many family members describe their experience in the program as life-changing.
Starts Saturday, June 16, 2012, 10 am to 12:30 pm
Mary's Mission Clinic
736 N. Country Club Drive, Mesa, AZ 85201
Registration required. Contact 602-759-8177
Win a Mobility-Equipped Van in National Contest
The Mayor's Commission on Disability Issues supports the inaugural National Mobility Awareness Month in May. The theme is "Life Moving Forward," which is also the central focus of a contest that will present three winners around the nation a custom wheelchair-accessible vehicle. To enter the contest, individuals or caregivers tell their story in writing or in a video and submit it to MobilityAwarenessMonth.com. Video submissions will be posted on YouTube. The public can vote for their favorite story from now until May 13 on Facebook and other social media platforms. The Wheelchair Accessible Vehicles will be given away to the winners May 16-31.
Media contact: Lisa Honebrink, 602-262-6180, or lisa.honebrink@phoenix.gov
Family Advocacy Day Registration
Children's Hospital Association
Family Advocacy Day, in Washington, D.C., July 23-25, provides a unique opportunity for families with children who have been treated at children's hospitals to come to Washington and advocate on behalf of their hospitals. The registration deadline for Family Advocacy Day is Monday, May 14.
More
8th Annual Summer Institute on Inclusive Practices
June13-14, 2012, Phoenix, AZ
Early Bird Registration until May 20th Additional discounts for family members, self-advocates, and students
See Trainings/Registration page for more details: www.regonline.com/builder/site/?eventid=1007985
For questions contact Sherry Mulholland, AZ WINS Coordinator, mulhollandmatsutakeout@yahoo.com or (520)603-4010
Early Head Start
Parents with children from birth to 2 years old and pregnant women have a special opportunity to learn comprehensive parenting skills in their home through the city's Early Head Start program. Head Start staff will visit each home weekly and parents participate in socialization events twice a month. Various activities help the children transition to Head Start and other preschool programs.
Contact: Marcie Colpas, 602-262-6164, or marcie.colpas@phoenix.gov
Head Start Offers Kids a Special Learning Experience
Families with children ages 3 and 4 before Sept. 1 that meet federal guidelines for family size may be eligible to enroll in the 2012-13 Head Start school year. Head Start offers active learning activities, nutritious meals and snacks, health screenings, and disabilities and mental health services. Parents of children with special needs are encouraged to apply. Visit a Head Start classroom to find out why the program is so special.
Contact: Marcie Colpas, 602-262-6164, or marcie.colpas@phoenix.gov
Free Trainings in Tucson - Pilot Parents of Arizona
Location: Children's Clinics, Flo Manning Conference Room, 2600 N Wyatt Dr., Tucson, AZ 85712
Register by calling: 520-324-3150 or email: robert@pilotparents.org
* Positive Behavior Support
Tuesday, May 8, 2012, 1pm to 3pm
* Bully Awareness
Tuesday, May 8th, 2012, 10am to 12pm
Rehabilitation Services Administration's (RSA) Focus Groups
Rehabilitation Services Administration's focus groups are open forums for clients, constituents and the public to address concerns, ask questions, and find out about services. Schedule of focus group meetings:
- Nogales: May 10th, 11am to 2 pm, Nogales City Hall, Council Chambers, 77 N. Grand Avenue, Nogales AZ
- Sierra Vista: May 11th, 1pm to 4pm, Sierra Vista Public Library, Mona Bishop Meeting Room, 2600 E. Tacoma, Sierra Vista, AZ
Family Centered Autism Program Conference
When: May 11, 2012
Time: 8 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Where: The Arizona Biltmore, 2400 East Missouri Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85016
In the Mesa Room
Late Registration (after April 5th)
- $100- Professionals and CEU's
- $75-Individuals on the spectrum, families, parents
Continental breakfast will be served. Lunch will be on your own.
Registration can be done online at www.touchstonebh.org, over the phone, or in person.
Touchstone Behavioral Health's Family Centered Autism Program presents their 1st Annual Conference. This conference is aimed toward educating and inspiring family, friends, professionals, educators, or any-one else whose life has been enriched by someone with autism.
Conference: Down Syndrome - Recent Advances in Medical Treatment
Saturday, May 12, 2012
7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Phoenix Children's Hospital
Melvin L. Cohen Conference Center * Rosenberg Children's Medical Plaza
1920 E. Cambridge Ave. * Phoenix, AZ 85006
Free Admission (Sorry, no respite care provided),
Free Parking: Enter the campus off 20th Street and Cambridge Avenue, two blocks south of Thomas Road. Free parking is available in the visitor parking garage.
Register online at http://action.phoenixchildrens.com/downsyndromeconference
Further Information please contact: Julia Maraston at (602) 933-5872 or jmaraston@phoenixchildrens.com .
Sponsored by * Raising Special Kids * DS Network Arizona * Sharing Down Syndrome Arizona * Phoenix Children's Hospital
Workshop sponsored by Developmental Disabilities Planning Council
An Educational Workshop on Aging, Dementia, and Developmental Disabilities
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Desert Willow Conference Center, 4340 East Cotton Center Blvd., Phoenix, Arizona
Who should attend? The workshop is designed to provide helpful information to families, direct care workers, clinicians, program staff, and administrators concerned about or involved with adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities affected by dementia.
Cost: $40
For more information: http://aadmd.org/page/ntg-dementia-preconference-agenda
To register: http://aadmd.org/articles/annualconference-pricing-and-registration .
Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) Fundamentals Class for Parents
A "Fundamentals of ABA" training class for parents, habilitation therapists, and anyone else involved in helping children with autism is being offered by AZA United. The class discusses the common features and needs of children on the autism spectrum and strategies for success to teach new skills and increase positive behaviors. Terms and concepts that will be discussed include reinforcement, function of behavior, extinction, differential reinforcement, prompting, fading, behavioral shaping and much more. This class is an interactive presentation that includes group activities, video examples and useful handouts.
Saturday, May 19, 2012
9:00 am - 12:00 pm
The Disability Empowerment's Center Conference Center, 5025 E Washington St., Phoenix 85034
Free for AZA employees and AZA families, $50 for general public.
More information and registration here.
The 13th Annual Arizona Survivors of Suicide Conference
Saturday, May 19, 2012
8:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Black Canyon Conference Center, 9440 North 25th Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85021
Sponsored by EMPACT- Suicide Prevention Center
The day will be focused on Hope and Healing, utilizing a lecture format, discussion, and experiential exercises designed to deepen and expand the understanding of grief, specifically as it relates to loss by suicide.
Conference Objectives:
- To increase knowledge about the dynamics of grief after suicide
- To explore opportunities in the grieving process for personal growth, which can lead survivors out of a tunnel of despair, into a journey of hope and acceptance
- To provide a forum for survivors to learn new coping skills
Cost: Survivors - $10.00, Professionals - $15.00
Registration due by Monday, May 14th, 2012. Walk-ins are welcome, but pre-registration is preferred; lunch will be based on availability. For more information or questions, please contact Sandra McNally at 480-784-1514, ext. 1219 or Sandra.McNally@empact-spc.com
Hydrocephalus Support Group Meeting
Barrow Neurological Institute
Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus (NPH) Support Group Meeting
When: Tuesday, May 22, 2012, 4:00 - 6:00 p.m.
Where: Sonntag Academic Pavilion, Barrow Neurological Institute, 350 W. Thomas Road, Phoenix, AZ 85013
Parking: Park in the 3rd Avenue Garage & cross 3rd Avenue at crosswalk
Once across the street, continue straight into building marked Sonntag Academic Pavilion
Guest Speaker: Joseph Zabramski, MD, Co-Director, Barrow NPH Center - Nationally recognized in the treatment of Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus. Please RSVP to Maggie Bobrowitz by e-mail: info@hydroassoc.org
2012 National Transition Conference: College and Careers for Youth with Disabilities
The U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) will be sponsoring the 2012 National Transition Conference. The conference, held in Washington, DC from May 30, 2012 through June 1, 2012, will bring together professionals and families to discuss the transition from school to adult life for people with disabilities.
Register or get more information here.
**A scholarship is available through Pilot Parents of Southern Arizona's LEAP Program. Call (520) 324-3153
for information and application.
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Chris had to think pretty hard about how she originally found Raising Special Kids. "It was a really, really long time ago," she laughed thinking of the journey through her son's elementary, middle and high school years. I think it was our doctor who referred us, or was it the school?"