Come Saturday, October 20, 2012 from 5:30 to 10:00pm for PAVE's soirée of the year, held at the Greater Tacoma Convention and Trade Center! With delicious food, wonderful music, and a wide array of live and silent auction items, this night promises to be as grand as The Big Apple itself!   

Learn more HERE!

 

Greetings!  

 

An email all too familiar to the staff at PAVE arrived; a mom just learned her beloved child tested positive in-utero for possible disabilities. She shared her pain, grief, sorrow and joy swirling around her. Emotions often triggered when she least suspected it; seeing the kids standing on a street waiting for a bus, watching a TV show and seeing a pregnant actor rub her belly, or even hearing the news of a friend's new pregnancy. The journey has begun for this Mom and her family. We know it well here at PAVE.

 

"The knowledge and wisdom I have gained from working with PAVE has caused me and other families to reach for what is best for our children and to believe it is possible; our dreams are possible." 

 

This quote sent from another parent gives us all hope. The key is that dreams require a team effort. This quarter is always unique for the Pipeline. September to December offers some significant dates; the start of a school year or the loss of not having a school year for one's loved one, holidays, and family gatherings and traditions. Add in our current economic times and there's a lot whirling around at this time of year. One constant is PAVE. 

 

We are here to listen, to share informational resources, offer connections in your community, and most of all to share stories of hope. It's as easy as remembering 1-800-5-PARENT. You never know when that simple gift may be needed by someone in your midst. One thing we've learned, we're in it together and for the long haul.  1-800-5-PARENT, for parents and families, we stand committed.

 

Warm regards from all of us at PAVE to you and your family,

 

Sincerely,

Tracy Kahlo,

Executive Director  

If your child has a disability, they may benefit from Assistive Technology (AT) tools that play to their strengths and help them with any challenges they may have. One of the questions that parents and educators are asking - how do I get an iPad or other mobile device written into the IEP?

Bookshare is a nonprofit, online library of specialized eBooks that can be read by people who cannot access traditional print books. People with print disabilities like blindness, low vision, physical disabilities, and severe learning disabilities can download Bookshare books and read them by listening to words being read aloud, see and hear words being read at the same time, read books in large font sizes, read in braille and more. Watch this video of one student reading with Bookshare: http://youtu.be/UNprRAtLy6c

Youth, Families, and Professionals Work Together to Improve Services in Mental Health

Washington State Behavioral Health was recently awarded one of the state grants to plan for the creation of a statewide network for delivering services to children with serious emotional disturbances and other children with special needs. 

This is based on a "system of care" (SOC) approach, better known to families as Wraparound Services. Wraparound (which derives from the National Wraparound Initiative) is a system of care planning and management concepts that involves a coordinated, community-based, family-driven and youth-guided system of providing services to children.

The holiday season is a time of laughter, joy, anticipation, and surprises. However, for families raising individuals with sensory and neurological disorders it can be a very stressful time of year. 

Throw in a mix of typically developing children, who enjoy and can handle the added stimuli, and you have just described a parent dilemma. How do we as parents meet the needs of all family members?