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Local Events
Annual Meeting for AZA Families
April 17th Children's Museum (Phoenix)
Wine Tasting Event for AZA
April 24th Wine Styles (Peoria)
Annual Autism Conference
March 26th & 27th
Autism Society of America(Phoenix)
Special Kids Day
March 27th
Raising Special Kids (Scottsdale)
Treatement for Feeding Issues
March 18th
SARRC (Phoenix)
ABA Training Class: Part 2
May 8th
AZA United (Phoenix)
Contact us for more information on any of these events! |
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Link of the Month
Umbrella NPO is a new local foundation that will be giving full-ride higher education scholarships to individuals on the autism spectrum. Join their Race for Higher Education on April 18th!
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New Ideas for the $10,000 Parent Initiative If you were in charge of 10,000 dollars to help families of children with autism in our community, what would you do with it?
Last month we announced that, for the first time, the families of AZA United have an opportunity to decide which project is the best use of these funds. Suggestions have been pouring in! Our mission is to help children and their families, so this project could be directed toward your children, parent wellness activities, or sibling and extended family needs. Where are the gaps in the community? What is not being addressed adequately? This is a chance to make a change.
Here is a list of some more cutting edge ideas that you, the families of AZA United, have suggested:
- Parent training for children approaching teen years
- Music groups for kids on the spectrum
- Facilitated social groups with typical peers
- A user-friendly resource booklet for newly diagnosed families
- Training for paraprofessional school aides
- A lending library of therapy materials
- A group trip for families to somewhere fun and relaxing
- Neighborhood playgroups to help children build friendships
- Community forum for parents and therapists to share ideas
- Gymnastics program for children and teens
Tell us which ones you like the best or email your ideas now to Parents@AZAunited.org. No idea is off limits! Read below about the upcoming Annual Meeting, where families will have a chance to vote and see an idea come to life. Thanks for your participation!
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Join Us for a Wine Tasting and Support AZA  On Saturday, April 24th, Wine Styles in Peoria will host an afternoon wine tasting event, with all proceeds benefiting AZA United to support the new Helping Hands program. Tickets are just $7 per person, or a group of five for $25. Each guest will get 6 tickets to sample their favorite wines. There will also be a silent auction, door prizes, food, massages and more! Don't miss out on this fun event. Visit the event homepage for more details and to get your tickets.
Register by March 31st and get a free door prize!
If you're really feeling motivated, there are other ways you can help. We need volunteers and we are seeking donations for the silent auction. Do you or a business you know have something to contribute? All donations are tax-deductible! Your business can also be an event sponsor for only $250.
If you would like to join our event committee, led by AZA parent Lori Rodriguez, give us a call or email Events@AZAunited.org.
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Attend the Annual Meeting for Families  Every year, the families of AZA United gather for the Annual Meeting to share ideas, elect new board members, hear about the state of the organization, and participate in planning for the future. The annual meeting is one of the key features of a Human Service Co-op to ensure that the organization is truly providing services based on what families actually want and need the most. This year, we will be meeting at the Phoenix Children's Museum! Save the date for:
Saturday, April 17th
1:30 to 4:00 pm
Invitations will be sent out soon, but if you would like to ask questions or RSVP now, please call us or email RSVP@azaunited.org. Space is limited so RSVP's are required.
The parents' meeting will be separate from the other museum activities, so please let us know if you would like to bring your children. If you do not have a habilitator or family member available to do activities with your child for the afternoon, we may be able to provide one. Hope to see you there!
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Movement Lessons  Contributed by Michelle Turner, AZA Member
No one plans to have a child with autism. It's an entirely different world that other people find hard to understand. I am a parent of two boys on the spectrum and a certified Movement Specialist and Educator. At my clinic, Movement Lesson, we use gentle touch and movement to enable any child with special needs or a learning disability to improve physically, mentally and emotionally. This method provides children with learning experiences that give them an opportunity to improve the functions of their nervous system. By working through a series of gentle, enjoyable movements, the child may display noticeable improvements in motion and awareness of his or her body. Some of the things that a parent might see within a few days of the first lesson are calmness, improved mood, better sleep, and increased awareness of surroundings. Some functional changes that have been seen as children continue the work include more effortless movements, better balance, improved mobility, greater problem-solving skills, and improved speech.
You can learn more at www.movementlesson.com. I would like to host a free demonstration of this method in the AZA United observable clinic. If you are interested in attending, please email demo@azaunited.org or call 602-773-5773 for more information! |
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Winshield Replacements & Car Donations  And now for something completely random...
Your car can help children with autism! AZA United has recently been invited to participate in two auto-related fundraising opportunities. The first is one we all know too well...that small crack in the windshield that requires the whole thing to be replaced. Did you know it is illegal in Arizona not to replace a cracked windshield because it can burst in the summer time? We have not verified this...but that is what we have been told. Either way, we've all seen those ads on TV offering 500 free dinners or a box of steaks for replacing your windshield, which sounds like a pretty good deal when your car insurance company will pay for it. But are you really going to use those? Why not consider going to Camelback AutoGlass instead? Just give them the code "AZA" and they will donate $75 to Arizona Autism United, to help improve services and resources for our local families. Make your appointment by calling (480) 939-7300, or visit www.camelbackautoglass.com.
But wait! There's more! Do you have a car you want to donate? That's right, a car you want to donate? It's actually pretty common! AZA United can now accept your donation through the support of Copart, an online car auction service. Just contact us and we'll help make the arrangements to make sure you get your proof of donation for tax deduction purposes. Learn more about Copart at www.copart.com. | |
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Thanks for all you do, and don't forget to tell us what else we can do...for you! |
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