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March 2009
In This Issue
What Do the Irish and Hawaii Have in Common?
Hydrotherapy Pool Campaign Gets a Huge Boost
In the News: Love Triumphs Over Pain
Diane Finds a Home
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What Do the Irish and Hawaii Have in Common?
 
St. Patrick's DaySt. Patrick's Day, of course!  We celebrated St. Patty's day at Hillside House with a joyful party hosted by the women of the Assistance League of Santa Barbara.  The highlight of the evening was the spirited performance by the Ukelele Lulus, playing - yep, you got it - Irish music. Residents were adorned in green leis, green top hats, and four-leaf clover stickers, and the smiling was truly contagious.  To see a short video of the performance, visit our page on Facebook. You do have to sign in, but then you can become a "fan" of our page and help us spread the word about Hillside House.  Since we launched our page last month, we already have 20 fans, and have heard from several former employees, who were delighted to re-connect with us and we with them.


Hydrotherapy Pool Campaign Gets a Huge Boost

PoolOur campaign to re-open the Aquatic Therapy Pool and get our residents back in the water is going swimmingly!  Thanks to a recent grant of $18,736 from the June G. Outhwaite Charitable Trust and the generosity of 22 other donors, we have now raised $26,241 of the $35,000 we need to operate the aquatic therapy program for a full year.  In addition, the Assistance League of Santa Barbara has generously pledged $5,920 to cover our one-time costs of refurbishing the pool.  Due to recent added safety regulations regarding drain systems for therapeutic pools, we are installing a new release mechanism on our drain system, which will add another $1,500 in cost before we can open the pool.  

Aquatic therapy is undoubtedly one of the greatest sources of physical pleasure and most enjoyable forms of physical therapy for our residents.  It is also one of the most effective for reducing pain, contraction and tension in the body and increasing strength, flexibility and mobility. These gentle, guided movements in warm water enhance body awareness, sensory organization and coordination and bring emotional benefits as well. We are looking forward to completing this campaign and getting our residents swimming again as soon as we can.  To view the progress of our campaign or to make a donation, please visit our campaign page at http://hillside-house.givezooks.com/campaigns/hydrotherapy-pool.  From this page, you can easily forward this campaign to friends via email or social networking sites, thereby helping us increase our base of support.  This kind of grassroots fundraising is truly on the leading edge of community service, and we are jumping into the pool with it.

In the News: Love Triumphs Over Pain

Ivan Cameron
It's not often that developmental disabilities make headline news, but on February 26, the New York Times ran a story about the life and death of Ivan Cameron, son of David Cameron, the leader of the opposition Conservative Party in Britain and the man favored by opinion polls to be Britain's next prime minister.  Ivan's recent death at the age of 6 touched an entire nation. According to the Times, "The BBC made his death the lead item on its main news bulletins for much of the day."  Ivan is described as "a boy with a lovely smile who was born with cerebral palsy and a severe form of epilepsy that deprived him of the ability to walk, talk or feed himself.  He spent much of his time in the hospital, sometimes with his parents sleeping on the floor beside him."

Ivan's story and that of his parents, David and Samantha, reminds us all of the extraordinary value of each human life, the unique struggles that parents and family members face, and the special power to move and inspire that many disabled people have.  Speaking of the time when he first learned of his son's disabilities, David Cameron said: "The news hits you like a freight train. You are depressed for a while because you are grieving for the difference between your hopes and the reality. But then you get over that, because he's wonderful." The New York Times article quoted a 2007 speech, in which Mr. Cameron spoke of his pride in the boy: "He is a magical child with a magical smile that can make me feel like the happiest father in the world. We adore him in ways that you will never love anybody else, because we feel so protective."

Following Ivan's death, David sent a letter to party activists, members and staff: "When we were first told the extent of Ivan's disability I thought that we would suffer having to care for him but at least he would benefit from our care. Now as I look back I see that it was all the other way round. It was only him that ever really suffered and it was us - Sam, me, Nancy and Elwen [the couple's other two children] - who gained more than I ever believed possible from having and loving such a wonderfully special and beautiful boy."

Family friend Bruce Anderson, wrote in the Telegraph: "Ivan may not have known it, but his short life enriched everyone who met him. The whole experience has brought David and Sam Cameron closer together. They were condemned to adversity. But they were always determined to repel gloom and to ensure that love triumphed over pain."

Diane Finds a Home 
 

We were recently sent a moving story about a former resident that reminds us of the importance of what we do here at Hillside House.  Diane had cerebral palsy from birth.  She required leg braces to walk and had nondistinctive speech, but her parents found her a wonderful school, Sunshine School in Riverside, where she was very happy.  However, when Diane was eight she developed encephalitis, which confined her to a wheelchair and she lost use of all but her right arm, as well as causing mild retardation.  Though she could no longer attend the school, she remained positive and courageous.

When Diane became a teenager, her parents could no longer provide the 24-hour care she needed, so she was relocated to a state hospital, because there seemed no other options. Everyone was unhappy about this decision.  Then her parents discovered Hillside House.  According to the article we received, "Diane was never happier than the day she moved to Hillside House. . .The facility was located in a beautiful valley west of Santa Barbara, California. Residents were encouraged to participate in community activities."  

"Diane's parents were invited to sponsor an in-house Toastmaster's club. The club name was 'The Communicators,' and its purpose was to help Hillside House residents improve their speech patterns so they could speak more clearly. The results were amazing! Residents who were very difficult to understand in daily conversation would practice, practice, practice, and then speak quite clearly during their Toastmaster speech assignment."

"Toastmaster speeches given by the residents were well worth listening to; they came from the heart of people anxious to tell their stories with their newfound freedom of clarified speaking." One of the examples given is of Bill Silverburg, a resident confined to a gurney and unable to sit up.  "He spoke in reply to someone who told him he would be better off dead. His thunderous reply was a testimony to the value of life, no matter what state you are in. There was not a dry eye in the assembly."


Diane entered her own speech in the Toastmaster's International Speech contest and did quite well.  Today she lives in Sacramento, in order to be near her sister, who became her caregiver after her mother passed away.

Liz and Moselle

Liz and Moselle enjoy St. Patrick's Day
1235 Veronica Springs Rd.
Santa Barbara, California 93105
(805) 687-0788
www.hillsidehousesb.org