Here is your update on the TACA (TALK ABOUT CURING AUTISM) Group for November 2003 #3. As always, email your thoughts and/or questions.
I want to make this e-newsletter informative for you. Let me know your thoughts on how I can improve it.
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IF this email is NEW to you and you don't recognize the name... WELCOME! These emails happen two to four times a month for the Southern California autism support group called TACA.
We focus on parent information and support, parent mentoring, gluten/casein-free diets, the latest in medical research, special education law, reviews of the latest treatments, and many other topics relating to Autism. Our main goal is to build our community so we can connect, share and support each other.
Talk About Curing Autism (TACA) provides general information of interest to the autism community. The information comes from a variety of sources and TACA does not independently verify any of it. The views expressed herein are not necessarily TACA’s.
TACA has an official web site at www.tacanow.com
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In this edition of TACA e-news:
- Next TACA Meeting Information
- Upcoming TACA Costa Mesa schedule & other TACA
meeting schedule info –
December 2003 - March 2004 - IMPORTANT: Location & time change information for TACA Costa Mesa meetings!
- General News:
- Dr. Rimland @ TACA San Diego meeting RESCHEDULED
- Government mapping out a strategy to address AUTISM
- DDS Co-pay – Important information and CALL TO ACTION
- New Infant and Autism study from UCSD
- Vaccine News
- Congressman talks a stand
- IMPORTANT information about Dec 13th TACA Costa Mesa SCHOOL DISTRICT ROUNDTABLE MEETING
- Need more support? MORE Coffee Talk!
- New Web Resources
- Social Events
- Upcoming Conferences
- Personal note
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1) Next TACA COSTA MESA support group meeting:
Date: Saturday, December 13, 2003 (always the 2nd Saturday of each month)
Time: 1:00 - 4:00 (NEW TIME!!!!!)
Note, old time slot was NOT available. This
will be our new time slot
from now on!
TOPIC: School District Round Table
An open discussion about school district services for PARENTS
AND
CARETAKERS OF ASD children only!
SEE ITEM #5 FOR IMPORTANT DETAILS ON THIS MEETING!
PLACE: VINEYARD NEWPORT CHURCH - 102 East Baker Avenue - Costa Mesa
(I am happy to report the church is back! With the new
time, consider it our new home!!)
(Please do not contact the church for meeting details. They have graciously offered use of their facility, but are not affiliated with TACA.)
Directions:
405 FWY South, Exit Bristol
Right on Bristol
Left on Baker
Go under FREEWAY.
The Vineyard Church is on the corner just after the freeway - turn left onto the freeway access road, make FIRST right into the Vineyard's parking lot.
And remember, we are still a non-faith based group!
CONTACT PHONE FOR DAYS OF THE MEETING ONLY: 949.678.9010
Please do NOT use the cell contact for days outside of the meetings. Thank you!
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2) UPCOMING TACA Costa Mesa Meeting Schedule:
All meetings at the Vineyard:
January 10, 2004: Big Fun Gymnastics – Occupational Therapy for ASD Kids
Gene Hurwin
February 14, 2003: An Insiders View on Autism – What does the DSM IV Criteria for Autism mean? Important information for parents and friends of autistic children.
Attorney and mother of four Dana, who, like her seven-year-old son, is autistic, will share her unique insider view on autism. An active, devoted mother, Dana offers her views on autism, including building on her strengths, her philosophical perspective on autism, and how she helps her children.
We are excited to have Dana take the time and be with us at our group!
March 13, 2004: Speaker to be announced!
Much more is being planned for 2004! Stay tuned!
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TACA has FIVE So. California meeting locations:
1) Costa Mesa: 2nd Saturday of each month (info in item #1 for meeting subjects and details.)
2) Mission Hills (the Valley, man!): NEW the 1st Sunday of every month, 7-9 p.m. Location: Jay Nolan Community Services – 15501 San Fernando Mission Blvd., Suite 200, Mission Hills CA 91345... -- Info: Contact Us
3) San
Diego: 4th Tuesday
evening – 6:30- 8:00
p.m. – Info: Contact Us
December 9, 2003 - 6:30-9:00
p.m. (see item 3 for more details!)
A Very Special Presentation by - Dr.
Bernard Rimland
What Research Tells Us About the Cause and Treatment of Autism
4) Corona: 3rd Saturday – 1:30–4:30 pm - NEW LOCATION!!!
For more info: Contact us
5) Torrance: 3rd Monday of each month at Whole Foods Market on PCH in Torrance – 6:30 - 9:00 p.m. For more info: Contact us
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3) General News:
A) San Diego TACA meeting announcement:
Tuesday
evening, December 9, 2003
6:30-9:00
A Very Special Presentation by
Dr. Bernard Rimland
What Research Tells Us About the Cause
and Treatment of Autism
The founder and director of the Autism Research Institute, Dr. Rimland
is an internationally recognized authority on autism and the father of a high
functioning autistic son. Dr. Rimland is the author of the prize-winning book Infantile
Autism and the founder of the Autism Society of America and the Defeat
Autism Now! (DAN!) Program. He served as chief technical advisor on the film Rain Man. He has
earned many awards for his work.
Mission
Valley Public Library
Community Room
2123 Fenton Parkway
San Diego, CA 92108
(Next to Ikea-see directions below)
Directions to Mission Valley
Library: 2123 Fenton Parkway San Diego, 92108
From I-15 exit, west on Friars Road and travel west towards Qualcomm Stadium.
Turn left at the second stoplight after the stadium (just past Costco) onto Fenton
Parkway. Take Fenton Parkway south, past
stoplight. Turn left into the parking lot towards the Ikea store. The library
is just east of Ikea. Please park in the shopping center lot, leaving library
parking for library users.
We have
no affiliation to the library, so please do not contact them regarding our
group.
Sorry, childcare is not offered at this time.
This program is neither sponsored nor endorsed by the San Diego Public
Library. The Library is not responsible for information provided in this
program
SPECIAL
THANKS TO CHERRI AND BECKY FOR RE-ARRANGING AND ARRANGING THIS WONDERFUL,
SPECIAL EVENT! PLAN TO JOIN US!
B) Government Mapping Out a Strategy to Fight Autism
By JANE GROSS
NY TIMES - Published:
November
19, 2003
Propelled by the skyrocketing number of diagnoses of the perplexing brain disorder autism in children, federal officials have for the first time mapped out a long-term, interagency plan to deal with the problem.
The plan includes objectives like the development of teaching methods that will allow 90 percent of autistic children to speak; the identification of genetic and non-genetic causes of the condition; and adequate services for all afflicted children in the next 7 to 10 years. The plan, which is to be unveiled at a major autism conference in Washington that begins today, signals the start of the push-pull process over financing. Such a plan was required by the Congressional appropriations committee that controls the budget for scientific and medical research and education programs of all kinds.
Few of the nearly 150,000 autistic children and young adults now getting special education services under federal law will benefit significantly, experts say, since the most effective treatment involves early, intensive behavior therapy, which is poorly understood and in limited supply.
Autism is a disorder with a wide range of symptoms sometimes so mild as to let a child function in a regular classroom with special services and at other times so severe that a child is mute and institutionalized.
The three-pronged plan sets goals for more coordinated biomedical research, earlier screening and diagnosis, and effective therapy. The plan demands, for the first time, collaboration between scientists, clinicians, educators and policymakers in an array of federal agencies.
"Millions of people need help," said Robert L. Beck, president of the Autism Society of America, the nation's oldest and largest autism advocacy group. "And this is a new opportunity and a very exciting one."
The need is enormous. According to federal education officials, in 1992-93, fewer than 20,000 of the nation's nearly five million special-education students, ages 6 to 21, were considered autistic. Ten years later, nearly 120,000 of six million special-education students had autism. That does not count the 19,000 children 3 to 5 receiving autism services under federal law, or those younger whose numbers have not been tallied.
Nobody knows the cause of the surge, although epidemiologists suspect it is largely a result of refined diagnosis and public awareness. That does not change the dimensions of a problem that strains schools, medical services and families. Nor does it affect forecasts of growing caseloads for decades to come.
Dr. Fred R. Volkmar of the Child Study Center at Yale University, a leading autism researchers and a member of the committee that drafted the 10-year plan, measures the crisis in more anecdotal ways.
Twenty years ago, Dr. Volkmar said, when he told people he worked with autistic children, they often misheard him and thought he had said "artistic." They had never heard of the disorder, which typically affects the ability to communicate, form relationships with others and respond appropriately to the external world.
By contrast, Dr. Volkmar said, it is rare these days not to know someone with an autistic child. He now sees children as young as 12 months, gets referrals from day-care centers and has a two-year waiting list. Were screening techniques to improve so that diagnoses could be made in infants, he would be hard-pressed to find schools, trained behavioral therapists or other services for them.
The plan, which will be reviewed by the Interagency Autism Coordinating Council, established by the Child Health Act of 2000, is presented in broad brush strokes, with few details and no price tags. It was drafted by scientists to assess the state of autism research and identify the roadblocks that might be hindering progress in understanding the cause and the best treatment options.
The plan lays out a timeline, in increments of 1 to 3 years, 4 to 6 years, and 7 to 10 years, and then ranks goals according to the likelihood of achieving them. Realistic goals in each of the three stages include the development, evaluation and institution of effective treatments, in collaboration with the Department of Education.
More challenging goals, by contrast, include finding effective drugs for the symptoms of autism and identifying environmental factors that may contribute to the development of the disorder.
"The idea is to be challenging everyone in the field to be reaching for the best we can possibly do," said Dr. Steve Foote, the director of neuroscience at the National Institute of Mental Health, which was designated the lead agency by the Child Health Act. The legislation, passed in the Clinton administration, addresses dozens of childhood disabilities. Some parents are likely to be frustrated by the plan's suggestion that it will take at least seven years to provide treatment for all who need it.
Mr. Beck of the Autism Society of America hoped that long-term research and improved services were not mutually exclusive. "There are good practices out there," he said, "just not enough of them."
He added: "And there's no money on the services and treatment side. What do we do with the kids for the next 7 to 10 years? We have to do both. You cannot just throw away a generation of children."
Many researchers and clinicians in the field credit the advocacy community with galvanizing the government, following in the footsteps of AIDS advocates in the 1980's. There are several such organizations, all included at the conference, that have shifted emphasis from looking for a cure to also fighting for a more systematic study of treatments and more services for children.
There is wide agreement that intensive behavioral therapy, which can include breaking a simple task like hand washing into a dozen component parts, beginning at the earliest possible age, is highly effective for many children. What remains a mystery is which children benefit and why, which techniques work best and whether early improvement is sustained over time, said Dr. Catherine Lord, director of the Autism and Communications Disorder program at the University of Michigan and an author of the interagency plan.
Parents of autistic children are stymied by how difficult it is to find properly trained behavioral therapists. Like others on the scientific side, Dr. Volkmar said that was because the Department of Education, under President Bush, had been "a real stumbling block." Mr. Beck agreed and said he was "quite excited to see them at the table."
Education officials denied a lack of interest. Robert Pasternack, assistant secretary for special education, said Mr. Bush had been generous in his financing requests for educational services for the disabled. Mr. Pasternack acknowledged a "critical shortage of special education teachers" and said the government was eager to "help states recruit and train them."
C) DDS – State of California CO-PAY
INFORMATION
Information provided by parent - Debbie Hosseini
I had a long talk with DDS today with one of the people that will be in charge of reviewing comments about the parental co-pay. and they cannot accommodate a Los Angeles location for the December 2 meeting. They don't have the proper hookups in their Sacramento Office. The meeting is going to be in Sacramento from 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. on December 2 in Office Building 9 (Twin Tower), Auditorium, Room 102, 744 P Street.
The parental co-pay or enrollment fees are for each child between the ages of 3 and 17 that live in a parent's home and receive services from the regional center.
It is very important that we get our suggestions to DDS and it is my impression the more letters they receive that hit a certain theme, the more weight that item will have. The DDS representative made it very clear that the parental co-pay was in the law and unless they determine that the costs outweigh the generated income, it will be enacted in July 2004. Now why can't we get Schwarzenegger to repeal this piece of legislation like he repealed the DMV fees?
They are still looking at the co-pay being based on a percentage of income with probably 10 percent being the cap and a sliding scale. So theoretically, if your household income was $80,000 you may be paying anywhere from 2 percent to 10 percent before you can receive services (that would be $1,600 to $8,000 depending on what percentages they decide to use and how the scale slides). Considering that the average child with developmental disabilities only incurs about $4,000 of costs this would probably eliminate a huge amount of children from the system and would be the end of the entitlement as we know it. The DDS representative said it was more likely that they will base the co-pay on income than any other criteria. He also stated that he doubted that they would take geographic location into consideration so if you are in a high-cost area, you are scr...d.
Children that are institutionally deemed and on Medi-Cal will be exempt from a parental co-pay.
It is critical that parents write to DDS stating the hardship that the parental co-pay would cause them and they should be specific about their child's disability and whether they will forego services if a parental co-pay is too high. My feeling is that many parents that will be paying over a certain amount for a parental co-pay may forego all regional center services because the cost of the co-pay will be prohibitive. This will in effect be the end of the entitlement.
I talked at length with this DDS representative about how I am already paying a tremendous amount out of pocket because the many therapies my child receives are considered experimental by the Regional Center. One suggestion you can make to DDS is that services that you pay for out-of-pocket because the Regional Center won't pay should offset the parental co-pay fee.
I am working on some talking points for the Schafer Autism Report (California Edition) but these are a few suggestions:
(1) behavioral intervention services should be exempt from a parental co-pay.
(2) any money that is received should stay in the DDS system and specifically in the purchase of services budget..
(3) there should be a sunset clause on the legislation
Letters should be addressed to:
William L. Niemeyer, Chief
Client Financial Services Section
1600 Ninth Street, Room 205, MS2-3
Sacramento, CA 95814
This is the communiqué from DDS
FROM: The
Department of Developmental Services
TO: STAKEHOLDERS
SUBJECT: CO-PAYMENT STAKEHOLDERS’ MEETING
Section 4620.2 of the California Welfare and Institutions Code requires the
Department of Developmental Services (Department) to develop a plan to submit
to the Legislature for their consideration to implement a system of enrollment
fees and/or co-payments assessed upon parents whose children, age. 3 through
17, live at home, and receive services purchased through regional centers (see
the enclosed statute for reference). As part of the plan development, a meeting
has been scheduled by the Department on December 2, 2003, from 10 a.m. to 3
p.m. in Office Building 9 (Twin Tower), Auditorium, Room 102 located at 744 P
Street Sacramento, CA 95814 to solicit your input for inclusion in the report
that will be submitted to the Legislature by April 1, 2004. Due to budget and
timeline constraints, only one meeting will be held; however, If you are unable
to attend, you may also submit your written comments to:
William L. Niemeyer, Chief
Client Financial Services Section
1600 Ninth Street, Room 205, MS 2-3
Sacramento, CA 95814
Your participation and discussion on the enrollment fee/co-payment assessment
program will be important in the final formulation of the Department’s plan to
the Legislature.
Items open for discussion include, but are not limited to, the following:
• Who should administer the enrollment fee/co-payment assessment
program?
• How should the fees be calculated (sliding scale, service
thresholds, limits on parental cost sharing, etc.)?
• Are there privacy issues end what should be the potential
safeguards?
• Should there be an appeal process for families who may dispute
the level of co-payment?
• Should there be an exemption process for families who are
experiencing financial hardship and may need deferral or waiver of any co-payment?
• What is the potential for the disruption of services to
applicable regional center consumers due to the implementation of a parental
co-payment?
We look
forward to your participation and input. If you have any questions, please call
Bill Niemeyer at (916) 654-2422.
Cordially,
CLIFF
ALLENBY
Director
D) Infants Needed for Participation in Studies of Autism and Language-Learning Disorders – University California San Diego
We are currently seeking 3-month old to 10-month old infant siblings of children with autism spectrum disorders, and 3-month old to 10-month old infant siblings of children with language-learning disorders for participation in a series of behavioral and/or EEG studies. All of the assessments are safe, non-invasive measures that we have used in previous studies in our laboratory to test infants in the general population. The assessments are carefully designed to assess specific brain and behavioral systems either known or strongly believed to be impaired in children with autism and children with language-learning disorders.
The goal of this research program is to better understand brain and behavioral development in both of these populations, and to contribute to the development of assessment and treatment strategies for the disorders in early infancy in the future.
Please contact us for more information if you have a 3-month old to 10-month old infant who has a sibling with autism, Aspergers syndrome, Pervasive Developmental Disorder - Not Otherwise Specified, a developmental langauge delay, or dyslexia. Participation involves between one and seven visits to our UCSD laboratory, and does not require an
on-going commitment.
Joe McCleery
jmccleery@psy.ucsd.edu
(858) 822-0541
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4) VACCINE NEWS
Congressman Takes a Stand
Note from Barbara Loe Fisher:
The attached October 31 letter written by Congressman Dave Weldon, M.D., to the
director of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) contains serious charges of
vaccine study data manipulation and potential cover-up of the true health risks
associated with mercury preservatives (thimerosal) in vaccines. Congressman
Weldon details the evidence supporting possible scientific fraud at the hands
of former and current CDC officials who appeared to have employed flawed
methodology and subsequently altered data in an epidemiological study
investigating the association between thimerosal containing vaccines and the
development of neurodevelopmental delays in some children, including autism.
The lead author of the study, published in the November 2003 issue of
Pediatrics, was a former CDC employee who has been employed by GlaxoSmithKline,
a major manufacturer of childhood vaccines.
If an investigation into what
appears to be scientific fraud turns out to be true, then the government health
officials involved should be required to resign their positions. The public
cannot have trust in mass vaccination policies promoted by health officials who
are not telling the truth about vaccine risks and are not doing everything in
their power to reduce those risks. The time has come for accountability by
those individuals who are responsible for insuring the safety of mandated
childhood vaccines. The public deserves and should accept nothing less than
total honesty on the part of those to whom we entrust our children's lives.
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Weldon, Major Autism, Speech Disorder Organizations Voice
Concern Over CDC's Use of Vaccine Safety Datalink to Investigate Thimerosal
Contact: Cheri Jacobus of
Capitol Strategies, 202-547-7358, or CheriJacobus@aol.com; Sallie Bernard of
Safe Minds, 970-429-1460, sbernard@safeminds.org
WASHINGTON, Nov. 3 /U.S. Newswire/ -- U.S. Congressman Dave Weldon, a physician,
and groups representing children with autism and speech/language disorders have
raised concerns over the use of the Vaccine Safety Datalink (VSD) by the CDC's
National Immunization Program (NIP) and others involved
in promoting childhood immunization. An NIP paper published in the November 2003
Pediatrics uses the VSD to investigate associations between thimerosal in
vaccines and neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism and speech/language
delay. The Pediatrics study represents the fourth version of the data analysis
by the NIP team.
In an Oct. 31 letter to CDC Director Dr. Julie Gerberding, Congressman Weldon,
MD, stated, "I have reviewed the article and have serious reservations
about the four-year evolution and conclusions of this study." The letter
continues to say, "There may have been a selective use of the data to make
the associations in the earliest study disappear" and remarks "how
easily the authors could manipulate the data and have reasonable sounding
justifications for many of their decisions."
Rules established by the CDC have made access to the VSD by independent researchers
virtually impossible. Representative Weldon has called for opening the VSD to
independent analysis. Echoing these sentiments, major organizations
representing families affected by autism or speech/language delay have issued
the following joint statement:
Vaccine Safety is an
important public health issue. The Vaccine Safety Datalink database must be
made available to all qualified research scientists in a timely manner. The
current practice of restricting access to the database to a limited group of
possibly biased individuals is not acceptable.
The organizations signing the joint statement are: Apraxia Kids, Autism Research
Institute, Autism Society of America, Cherab Foundation, Cure Autism Now, Safe
Minds, Speechville Express, and Unlocking Autism.
The letter from Congressman Dave Weldon to Dr. Julie Gerberding can be accessed
at http://www.house.gov/weldon/issues/autism.pdf. The autism and speech
organizations' joint statement and background information can be accessed at http://www.safeminds.org .
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5)
IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT DECEMBER 13th
TACA COSTA MESA – SCHOOL
DISTRICT ROUND TABLE MEETING
Meeting Goals
School districts greatly vary in the services they provided and approaches to helping special education children meet their annual goals. This is often the case for children where cases vary drastically even WITHIN THE SAME DISTRICT.
The goal of the TACA December meeting is to connect with community, freely discuss district high points and possible issues and use the time to share important information about our children. These discussions will be set up by school district where ever possible and then by city and close geographic proximity.
What we need
1) For TACA’s most popular districts – a district parent volunteer to facilitate the meeting.
2) A note taker for important elements learned.
3) And a sign-in sheet should the round table participants wish to keep in contact for future issues and discussions.
Rules:
1) Everyone must do one thing at the meeting:
· Introduce themselves, specify relationship to the child, provide the child’s AGE and what district they reside in. It would be best but optional if they could say if they have an in-home program or school site program and services.
· NOTE: Parents are NOT required to share any information, sign in for future meetings and correspondence. The rest of the meeting is optional.
2) If
you learn something from a new friend at this meeting you are NOT TO SAY
NAMES OF PEOPLE RECEIVING SERVICES TO YOUR DISTRICT. A good way to
discuss with the district at a meeting is:
”I have acquaintances in this district who receive such services for their
child with similar issues. I am not going to share names, that is not what is
important here. What is important is a disparity of services. How are you
suggesting we move forward here?”
WHY IS THIS SO IMPORTANT? Retribution to the family who shared
important information is possible. And it is not required you share
confidential information shared in confidence by parents in the same district
with the district.
3) If you have a confidential settlement with your district, you may NOT discuss this settlement with anyone else. Please contact your special education attorney for details.
4) TACA cannot guarantee all people will follow these rules or that a district person is present at this meeting. If a piece of information is truly confidential and your are concerned about confidentiality and protection, please do not share this information!
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6) Need more support? MORE COFFEE TALK !
Coffee talk is going to be your hour (or so) once the kids are away at school to chat with other families affected by Autism. This is an unstructured, casual meeting environment to chat and talk about what you want to talk about.
Date: Tuesday,
December 16th
Time: 9:00 a.m. –
10:30 a.m.
Location: Diedrich Coffee – Costa Mesa
1170 Baker Street (off the 405 freeway and Fairview Street)
NO need to RSVP, just join us for a little coffee, a little talk, no big whoop!
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7) New Web Resources
Check out the NEW TACA Web site at www.tacanow.com
More to come over the next couple of months!
Another GREAT AUTISM RESOURCE: http://www.fightingautism.org/
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8) SOCIAL EVENTS
From our very own Diane Gallant:
OCME plans to have Santa Claus on their December dates. What fun! (I know
who they'll be using, too....we were there yesterday, and one of the workers looks exactly like Santa....and his full beard is REAL!)
FREE TRAIN RIDES - third full weekend of every month. The OCME Train Rides for the remainder of the year are:
Saturday and Sunday: 12/20 and 12/21
Run 10:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Their track is located in Fairview Park on Placentia Ave. between Adams on the north and Wilson on the south.
For Information, call (714) 54-TRAIN.
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9) CONFERENCES IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA:
Autism/Asperger's Conference - CEUs for ASHA/APA – Garden Grove
Dr.
Tony Attwood with an All New All Day Workshop on Anger Management, Teen
Challenges, and Making Special Interests a Positive. Nov. 30, Garden Grove
Registration
7am - close 4:30pm See website for
prices. Anaheim Embassy Suites, Anaheim South 11767 Harbor Blvd. www.FutureHorizons-autism.com
or 800-489-0727
=====
Autism And Young Children With Visual Impairments – Los Angeles
Infant
Development Association of CA, co-sponsored by LAUSD Infant & Preschool
Support Services. This training will focus on strategies and interventions for
identifying and serving children with visual impairments and autism. Participants
will learn how to build communication skills for these young children. Fremont
Dec. 1, Los Angeles Dec. 2
Registration deadline: Nov 29 - Register online at www.idaofcal.org IDA
Member or Parent - $79.00
=====
Dramautism – Studio City
Drama
therapy for HFA/Aspie kids (ages 4 to 7). Taught by Debra Clark,
producer-writer and mother of two autistic sons; and Patsy Keating, a special
education teacher for LAUSD.
Now until Dec. 28, Studio City - 4pm to 5pm, $30/session - CBS
Television Studios
Debra Clark, dclark0704@yahoo.com
or 818-360-7125
=====
|
JANUARY 7, 2004 - SPECIAL EDUCATION & THE LAW WORKSHOP Presented by East County Children’s Disability Council and Team of Advocates for Special Kids. (Previously scheduled October 29 at El Cajon Library, but canceled due to wildfires). Due to limited space, the Workshop is $10.00 to professionals and $2.00 to parents of children with disabilities, with scholarships available. Please send your check to reserve your place at the table to: Location: East County Children’s Disability Council - 1068 Broadway, Suite 221 - El Cajon, CA 92021For more information contact Janet Light 619-465-2288 or e-mail: secsess@cox.net. Time is 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM. ***Come as early as 9:00 am for a tour of our Library and see what books are available for check out. Question and Answer period after presentation. ===== Solving the Relationship Puzzle: Opening Doors to Friendship
for People on the Autistic Spectrum – Los Angeles |
|
===== Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) 2-Day Workshop –
San Diego |
=====
MAJOR Autism Conference announced for Southern California by CASD.
Location: Santa Monica – April 23-24, 2004
Watch web site for speaker list: http://www.casdweb.org/index.htm
If you have questions or would like more information, please email the director at kazuko@grandecom.net.
______________________________________________________________________
10) Personal Note:
At each meeting, we will always have in attendance new parents fresh with a diagnosis of autism. The look of sadness, some anger, and complete confusion is generally what is found on their faces. How do I know it so well? Because I have never forgotten that feeling and can recognize that look because there are days – even four years later – that I feel the same way. And there are also days where I have hope, energy and incredible excitement about my son Jeff on the incredible journey traveled so far and the amazing progress made.
I bring this topic up because sometimes I forget to slow down, hug and provide hope to the new families that attend our TACA meetings. Within our community we have built a network of families and friends ready to assist “newbies” along in their journey whether they are recently diagnosed or further along in the journey. If you are in need or have a friend in need be sure to Email me. . I may not have all the answers, but I will do my best to help and understand.
During the Thanksgiving holidays (and as frequently as I can remember!) I love to recognize the great families, providers, and friends for their daily help for someone affected by autism. THANK YOU! THANKS FOR GIVING! Without YOU, this journey would be a lot longer and more difficult!
Hugs, thanks, be SAFE, AND HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
Lisa A Jeff's mom
Web Page for the TACA GROUP: www.tacanow.com - check it out/let me know your thoughts at contact us !
Talk About Curing Autism (TACA) provides general information of interest to the autism community. The information comes from a variety of sources and TACA does not independently verify any of it. The views expressed herein are not necessarily TACA’s.
TACA does not engage in lobbying or other political activities.
P.S. TACA e-news is now at 824 families