Welcome to the first edition of the Trisomy 21 Times...the Down Syndrome Foundation of Florida's newsletter. We're so excited about DSFF's amazing start as a new resource in the community!
October is Down syndrome awareness month and provides a great opportunity for us to celebrate individuals with Down syndrome and their achievements. For many this may be reaching a developmental milestone that you've been working on for months or it may be sharing information about Down syndrome with your child's school or work place. We hope you'll have the chance to shatter myths about Down syndrome as we work together to change the erroneous perceptions that still exisits in our world today. For more information and a printable fact sheet about Down syndrome click here to go to the NDSS website.
We are also celebrating all of the milestones since our inception just six months ago. In this short amount of time we have awarded nearly 50 scholarships, sponsored several informational meetings, 'Date Night' and 'Mom's Night Out' events, as well as hosted the Orange County School Board Chair Election Forum. We were fortunate to call several local organizations our partner in these efforts, including: UCP of Central Florida, Autism Society of Greater Orlando, Track Shack Foundation, Lucky Fin Swim School / The Swim Squad, St. Margaret Mary Church, The Chabad of Greater Orlando and The BranderBerry.
Thank you for joining us as we move toward our vision of inclusion for all people with DS. This journey is filled with many things: joy, anticipation and celebration as we achieve our goal of providing opportunities for inclusion and success. All things worth achieving come with hard work.
Please check out the Events section of our website to see some of our upcoming events as well as those that have already occurred.
When POTENTIAL
is given OPPORTUNITY
the outcome is SUCCESS |
| Join NDSS Buddy Walk on Washington |
 Join the National Down Syndrome Society for their 2nd annual Buddy Walk on Washington Feb. 7th and 8th, 2011. This advocacy conference will give you an opportunity to help send a cohesive message about Down syndrome advocacy and inclusion to members of congress. While participants won't actually do a 1 mile walk around DC, you'll have an opportunity to meet with legislators from your district on Capitol Hill. There will be an advocacy training session, reception and award banquet the night prior to meeting your legislators on Capitol Hill. For more information about this conference go the the NDSS website If you are interested in traveling as a group, please contact Christie Bancalari at [email protected]. |
| Just Keep Swimming... |
 Thanks to the Track Shack Foundation for their generous grant which allowed DSFF to provide scholarships for swim lessons this summer and fall. The Lucky Fin Swim Program was developed by Sandi Ebben (DS advocate and mom) to teach kids of all ages and abilities learn water safety using Red Cross standards. Lucky Fin uses a non-threatening technique to teach kids how to swim. Although the deadline for scholarships for the fall session has passed, stay tuned for more opportunities for swim lessons and scholarships and check out our website to learn more about their program and see these 'little fish' in action! |
Soaring to New Heights | |
 She goes to college, races off to dance class; interns part-time at the UCP charter school as a teacher's aide, swims the backstroke and plays tennis in her free time. Elyse Mundelein is your typical college co-ed except for one thing...she also has Down syndrome. In a world where people often see disability before capability, Elyse has persevered to make her dreams come true. With the support of her family and friends and her dogged determination, Elyse is living out her dream of going to college. She has a motto:" You can do anything if you don't give up." Ted and Tina Mundelein are Elyse's parents and her biggest advocates.
There are moments in life that you meet someone who lifts your spirit and encourages your soul. Elyse is one of those people who will make you stop and think twice about what is possible. When you meet Elyse and hear her talk about what she is doing in her life as a young lady attending the University of Central Florida, you simply can't deny that with access to opportunity and a can-do attitude, the sky is the limit. For the full story go to http://dsfflorida.org/Success_Stories.html |
| DS Pregnancy eBook and Website |
October also marks the launch of a much needed new resource in the Down syndrome community. DownSyndromePregnancy.org is a non-profit organization that offers support to expectant parents who have received a prenatal Down syndrome diagnosis and are moving forward with their pregnancy. This new website includes the ebook Diagnosis to Delivery: A Pregnant Mother's Guide to Down Syndrome by Stephanie Hall Meredith and Nancy McCrea Iannone, a moderated blog with commentary about topics relevant to expectant families, sample emails and other much needed tools and information. The resource offers non-political, compassionate, informative and honest support for those in post-diagnosis pregnancy or waiting until birth for a confirmed diagnosis. What a wonderful way to celebrate Down syndrome awareness month! Visit the website today at www.downsyndromepregnancy.org.
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| Congratulations to Bill Sublette |
Congratulations to Bill Sublette who won the primary election and is now Orange County's first elected School Board Chair. On Thursday, August 5, the Down Syndrome Foundation of Florida and the Autism Society of Greater Orlando joined forces to host a forum for the Orange County School Board Chair candidates. Scott Maxwell from the Orlando Sentinel moderated the event and presented questions to the candidates that had been submitted by the public. Each of the candidates signed a pledge promising to keep the needs of students in the ESE program in Orange County from slipping into the background. For more information on the forum and the pledge that was signed click here.
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| McKay Scholarship Expands |
The Florida special-needs school voucher will expand beginning in the 2011-2012 school year. The McKay scholarship program allows children with an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) who have been enrolled in a public school in the last five years to obtain a voucher to attend an approved private school. In the past, students had to be enrolled in the previous school year. Students must be first time applicants to the McKay program to qualify. To find out more details on the plan and how to qualify or apply click here.
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| Monica & David |
On Thursday, October 14 at 8PM (EST) HBO is showing an award winning documentary film that explores the marriage of two adults with Down syndrome and the family who strives to support their needs. Monica and David are blissfully in love and want what other adults have-an independent life. Full of humor, romance and everyday family drama, the film uses intimate fly-on-the wall footage to reveal the complexity of their story. While Monica and David are capable beyond expectations, their parents, aware of mainstream rejection of adults with intellectual disabilities, have trouble letting go. To see a trailer for this film go to our Events page.
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| SAVE THE DATE | | |
Thursday, November 11 Dr. Leichtman will be presenting on the biological aspects of DS and TNI (Targeted Nutritional Intervetion) at the DSFF membership meeting.
Friday December 3rd is our first ever Winter Wonderland--It's a Wonderful Life Party at the West Orlando Rotary Club. Come join us for an evening of dancing, food and fun.
For more details visit our EVENTS page. |
| Oral Motor Therapy | | |
Renee Roy Hill of Talk Tools therapy will be in Orlando Feb.14-18th, 2011. Limited scholarships will be available. Look for more information on our website soon!
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| A-typical Wedding Gift | |
Usually the bride and groom are the recipients of the gifts, but this time, it was the other way around. Congratulations to Louis and Gina Gampero on their recent wedding. The couple gave a cash donation to the DSFF in lieu of giving out party favors to their guests. The DSFF is grateful to the Gampero's for their generous and creative contribution and wishes them all the best in the future.
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| Success Stories | | If you would like to have your story, your child's or loved one's story highlighted on the DSFF's website, send us a note about what you'd like the world to know. We will be adding new stories frequently and we'd be honored to feature someone you love! |
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| Special Savings | | | Woodbine House is offering a special savings to all its customers during October in celebration of Down syndrome awareness month. Save 20% on your order through October 31. |
| Board of Directors | | |
Christie Bancalari
Camille Gardiner
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