We love the ‘Dallas Moms’ Blog
by Beth
Hats off to the Dallas Moms Blog for its post about the Easter Seals Autism Spokespersons Network (ASN) meeting in Dallas last month.
Easter Seals is the nation’s leading non-profit provider of services for individuals with autism and other disabilities, and the Dallas Moms Blog explains why it is so important that we get word out to those who need our services.
Many people in our society today may not know that Easter Seals has been a great source of information, services and support for families living with various disabilities for nearly a century. With the sharp increase in Autism diagnoses over the past two decades, Easter Seals astutely recognized the critical need for quality treatments for young children, on-going support for families and continued services for adolescents, young adults and grown men and women living with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Not only does Easter Seals work “nationally to provide children and adults with autism individualized treatment plans and comprehensive services,” they also advocate in our nation’s capital for increased research financing. Their motto is basically that any person living with an ASD, no matter the age at diagnosis, is capable of tremendous progress through individualized therapies and interventions so that they may lead meaningful lives.
The author of the poast, Leigh Attaway Wilcox, has a son with Asperger’s Syndrome. She sat on a panel at the Autism Spokespersons Network meeting last month, where Easter Seals Autism Spokespersons Network and Affiliate Marketing Partners met in snowy Dallas to network, brainstorm and share ideas of ways to let people know about Easter Seals’ extensive array of autism services. Dallas Moms Blog Administrator, Healthy Living writer and Dallas Morning News columnist Nancy Churnin was also on the panel
The group of experts Nancy and I met last week are proactive, devoted people focused on spreading the word that Autism is treatable and that Easter Seals might be a good place for families to find help. Their questions for Nancy centered around professionally approaching members of the media to effectively utilize the mainstream media to share information about ASD across the nation.
Nancy graciously shared information, including what a typical week might look like in her office at the Dallas Morning News. She also offered information regarding the kinds of things which have motivated her in the past to write about special needs topics in the Healthy Living section of the paper. I was personally asked to share tips and suggestions for blogging about special needs topics, with ASD front and center.
Members of the Autism Spokespersons Network must have been taking notes during that panel — since that meeting in Dallas we’ve published a post by ASN member Lisa Tate from Easter Seals Central Texas, one from ASN member Erin Rogers of Easter Seals Peoria & Bloomington-Normal, and one from Affiliate Marketing Partner Mike Pelfini of Easter Seals Bay Area. Keep your eye on the Easter Seals and autism blog for more posts from ASN members in the future.