News from United Cerebral Palsy of Oregon and SW Washington

Banner2

The UCP Voice

September/October 2011

Greetings!

As we are coming up on our 7th Annual Walk, Roll, 'n' Run, I wanted to share with you my absolute delight in the direction this event has headed. As you know, we have provided supports to families since back in the late 80's.

Through the years, funding for the department has been a challenge. In the State of Oregon, funding for adult programs has been the priority. Funding for supporting families has been insufficient at best. Our belief has been that children should be raised in a family, and we have dedicated ourselves to doing what we can to keep families together.

We provide newly diagnosed material for new families so they can get a handle on what they will be facing. We provide Support Groups and Outings so that families can get together and share their resources with each other. We provide Respitality so that parents get a chance to get away for a break now and again. We do all this and more. And there is so much more that needs to be done. But as a result of the Walk, Roll, 'n' Run, we now have a steady stream of support for our program.

Our thanks goes out to everyone who helps us in this. There are our sponsors, especially Shionogi and Vital Life Foundation, but there are so many more. There is our board and staff who work tirelessly to ensure that the event goes off without a hitch... in particular, Kerry Pinney and Susan Cushman. There are our celebrities: Terry Porter, Art Edwards, (formerly of KOIN-TV now with KGW-TV and also a CP dad) and Cruze from 105.1 The Buzz. Lastly, we want to thank our families, who do a tremendous job garnering donations and support.

I hope to see you on September 10th and thank you again for your continued support of United Cerebral Palsy.

Sincerely,

Bud Thoune
Executive Director
United Cerebral Palsy of Oregon & SW Washington

Family Support Services

Help Support Family Support!

by Susan Cushman

UCP's 7th Annual Walk, Roll 'n' Run is coming up in only two weeks. We're almost ¾ of the way to our goal of raising WRR logo 2011 $80,000 for UCP's Family Support Department - - which provides resources, support and hope to families raising children with cerebral palsy. We're here from the moment a parent receives a diagnosis throughout their lives.

This fun and inspiring community-building event includes a 2.5 mile walk/roll around the Esplanade, and an 8K run along the Springwater Corridor. Last year we had over 650 participants, and this year we hope more than 800 join us. That means YOU! Go to www.walkrollnrun.org to register, and watch the five minute video on the home page with photos of past events. You can start a team, join a team, sponsor a team, or make a general donation. Every bit helps!

Terry Porter, former Portland Trail Blazer and Cruze from 105.1 The Buzz will be on hand, as well as the Rose City Rollers and PSU cheerleaders. Papa Murphy's and The Old Spaghetti Factory are generously providing lunch to all participants. Volunteers are always needed to make this event successful - go to the website to sign up.

To read a story about why Family Support is vital to families, visit here

Get to Know a Person We Support

Get to Know: Amy Ferrell

by Kerry Pinney

Amy Ferrell has been a part of UCP's Supported Living

Program for some time now, but that is only one piece of Amy's many years of involvement. Amy became a member of UCP's Board of Directors in 2000, and has been serving and "representing the disabled community and those that do not have a voice" ever since.

Amy always knew that she wanted to work in healthcare. She has tremendous respect for nurses of all types and the work that they do. This stems from the role nurses have played in her own life. After high school, Amy earned a Certificate of Completion in early childhood education from Portland Community College, and has worked with children and children with special needs ever since.

She worked for 15 years at Providence Montessori School, especially enjoying the time she spent reading to them and helping them learn. It was through this job that the opportunity arose for her current position at Providence Child Center and the Center for Medically Fragile Children. Amy recalls how proud her mother was of her when she got her job at Providence. Amy calls it her "dream job". You can tell that this is the place for Amy by the way she talks about her work. She talks about how much she "appreciates the children for who they are" and how she finds great joy in reading to them, holding their hands and keeping them comfortable.

Amy also has much appreciation for the support she receives from the staff at UCP, and the role they play in helping her to live independently. Lately, Amy and her staff have been focusing on computer skills. Amy started out going to the Belmont Library on Wednesday evenings, where she learned the basics, and then bought her own computer in 2007. She credits the "patience" and support from Willow Team Leader Erik, for the new skills she has learned that allow for more freedom and increased personal connections. Amy regularly heads to the Cartridge World in her neighborhood to refill her ink and she has a love of researching things (especially medical) on the internet. Through such sites as Facebook, Amy has been able to stay in better touch with family and friends, something she very much enjoys! She has also discovered new neighborhood friends when she asked for a little help with assist her with computer issues. Not to be left out is the incredible fundraising that Amy has been able to do for Walk, Roll 'n' Run, using her computer.

Amy Ferrell is a very passionate person who knew what she wanted out of life and has gone after it with success! Thank you Amy, for being a wonderful part of the UCP family!

Employment Solutions
Employment Success
By Xochil Springer

When Dan came to Employment Solutions his dream job was to wash fire trucks. In Dan's words, "I like to make things shiny and clean and help out people." After many conversations, phone calls and meetings, washing fire trucks was not something that could be done at this point in Dan's life. As a team we came back to the drawing table and talked about all the things that Dan is a good at.

As a recent transition program graduate, Dan had many work experiences and had the opportunity to find out what works and what does not work for him. An opportunity with Sugar Wheel Works in North Portland presented itself and seemed to be a good fit for Dan and his needs. Jude Kirstein is the owner of Sugar Wheel Works (in the HUB building on North Williams); Jude builds custom bicycle wheels. Jude expressed that she needed someone who could come in once a week to help with the small tasks around the shop like cleaning, organizing and cutting spokes.

Dan went in for an interview and was offered the chance to be an intern! This opportunity has been good for both Jude and Dan. Jude has more time to build her amazing wheels and Dan has become so efficient with his tasks that he has consistently taken on new duties every week.

Reflecting on the past Dan and Sugar Wheel Works four weeks Jude reported, "I love his enthusiasm, and working with someone who wants to be here. These are seemingly small tasks but to have someone who enjoys doing the work is great. He works so hard and I appreciate the support that Employment Solutions has given me. He does a really good job, is very thorough and always wants to do his best. I am always relieved to know that I have a great team behind me." The next steps are evaluating if Dan's internship can turn into a paid position. Dan's future is certainly 'rolling' along!

Employment Solutions now has a Facebook page - "like" us to stay up-to-date on new hires and advocacy articles for individuals with disabilities. Visit the site here

For more information about Employment Solutions, contact Melissa Miller at mmiller@ucpaorwa.org

Neighborhood Waves

Exploring the Sunnyside Neighborhood

By Kerry Pinney

neighborhood waves logo

Our Neighborhood of the month for July and August has been the Sunnyside Neighborhood of SE Portland. We want to thank the following businesses in the Sunnyside Neighborhood for being a "featured business." These businesses gave the people we support a coupon to use while they explored the area in July/August, as part of UCP's Neighborhood Waves.

Oasis Cafe
Buffalo Exchange
Kids at Heart Toys
Por Que No? Taqueria
Saint Cupcake Deluxe

Special thanks to The Bagdad Theater, for donating movie tickets, and to Scott Goetchius at the Historic Belmont Firehouse for providing a wonderful tour for the people we support along with staff! There is a "simulator" experience as part of the tour that lets you get a feel for what it is like to ride in a firetruck. That was probably the most enjoyed part of the tour.

Jen & Bill in uniform miguel in hat