A Wider World for kids with autism

by Matt McAlear

Earlier this year Easter Seals Bay Area was contacted by the PBS show A Wider World. Roger McCarville, the show’s host, had heard about Easter Seals Bay Area’s Early Intervention Autism Project and wanted to feature us on his show.

The Early Intervention Autism Project was the recipient of a Safeway Empowerment grant last year. The grant allowed us to expand the program from beyond the pilot stage into communities across our service area. We were thrilled that A Wider World wanted to track our progress.

What was even more thrilling was to see the finished product — the PBS show recently aired in twelve different markets! Roger, the host of the show, is an individual with a physical disability. He dedicates his show to, in his own words, “giving hope to the challenged by showing them that there are others like them who have overcome obstacles and misconceptions in order to lead normal, fulfilling lives.”

Roger interviewed one of our Early Intervention staff, and he talked with a family receiving our services. He interviewed me for the piece too. Throughout the day, both on and off camera, Roger went beyond the typical interview questions. He made a genuine effort to connect with each of us individually.

Roger kept us laughing all day, and he was a pleasure to work with. He was truly interested in the work we do and the individuals we serve everyday through the Early Intervention Autism Project. We’ve received numerous calls and emails of inquiry, kudos, and support ever since the show aired on PBS, and subsequently on YouTube. Thanks to Roger and his team at A Wider World for their support of Easter Seals, Safeway and our work with the ASD population!

Sen. Durbin’s speech on hiring workers with autism and other disabilities

by Beth Finke

On World Autism Day this year (April 2), Sen. Richard J. Durbin (D-IL), introduced a bill that would increase vocational opportunities for people on the autism spectrum. The bill, called the Autism Treatment Acceleration Act, would fund programs to test new ways to provide vocational training, employment assistance, transportation, and other services so that adults with autism will have a better chance of finding productive employment and improving their quality of life. The bill is co-sponsored by 16 other Senators.

Durbin talked about the bill during a speech he gave at Illinois Wesleyan University on August 12. The speech stressed the need for more job opportunities for people with autism and other disabilities. Quoting from a recent DePaul University study on the costs and benefits of employing people with disabilities, Durbin reminded his audience that people with autism and other disabilities make very loyal employees.

This is what the study found: on their annual performance reviews, employees with disabilities rated slightly higher than their co-workers without disabilities. Employees with disabilities took fewer scheduled and unscheduled days off work — just the opposite of what many might assume.

In addition, the average cost of accommodating the workers with disabilities — modifying the workplace to meet their needs — was $313. As investments in good, dependable workers go, that’s a bargain. And you know what the most frequent request for “reasonable accommodation” was? Flex time, which costs nothing.

Sen. Durbin ended his speech with a long list of scientists, inventors, and writers with autism whose contributions have changed the world.

Clearly, not everyone on the autism spectrum has the potential to become a Nobel laureate or invent a world-changing device. But millions of Americans with autism and other disabilities do have talents and contributions that our nation needs. And in this economy, with government at all levels facing budget cuts, doesn’t it make sense to try to bring more people into the workforce rather than leaving them to rely so heavily on public programs? That is all people with disabilities are asking for: the chance to be full members of our society, to make the most of their God-given talents, and to work to the best of their abilities.

Amen.

In memory of Senator Kennedy

by Katy Beh Neas

Today, one of our greatest (if not the greatest) champions died. I’ve had the honor of working with Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA) for the past 25 years. He was always the one who would step up and fight the good fight to protect the interests of people with disabilities and their families.

The struggle for equal opportunity for Americans with disabilities is an essential part of our country’s commitment to civil and human rights for all Americans, and no legislator understood that better than Kennedy. He will definitely be missed, but his legacy will be felt for generations to come. My prayers go to his family and to our country.

Autism school a hit in its rookie year

by Maurice Snell

Saturday was a special day at Easter Seals Metropolitan Chicago. To celebrate the one-year anniversary of our state-of-the-art Therapeutic School and Center for Autism Research, Easter Seals Metropolitan Chicago organized the first annual Running Bases for Independence (RBI for you baseball fans).

The softball tournament featured sponsors such as the CENTURY 21 Real Estate Corporation, CVS Caremark, and many other employees from different Easter Seals sites throughout Chicago.

The event would not have been complete without the presence of notables such as Illinois Governor Pat Quinn, White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen and White Sox pitcher Gavin Floyd. I, along with my mother and father, had the opportunity to meet the Governor and share my life story along with other families of Easter Seals clients. Then I had the opportunity to get together once again with my buddy White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen, a great spokesperson for autism at Easter Seals Metropolitan Chicago.

The reunion with Ozzie was great, he recognized me right away! It would be greater if the White Sox were on a roll, though. I grew up on Chicago’s south side and have always been a White Sox fan, and while I am writing this they are in second place. No matter what happens the rest of the season, I will always be a fan of this White Sox charity that pledged one million dollars towards our new school. I had a conversation with Ozzie and Gavin on Saturday and I told them to hang in there. I hope my words will help — the Sox have a month-and-a-half left to get on that hot streak to overtake the Detroit Tigers in the American League Central Division.

In closing, I would like to personally thank Governor Quinn, Ozzie and Gavin for taking time out of their busy schedules to come support Easter Seals. The dream of this new school and research center would not have been possible without their support of our services and dedication to our mission. I look forward to continuing this great relationship with the White Sox organization and the Governor of Illinois as we continue to support clients at Easter Seals.

Nurse Practitioners rank our blog among their faves

by Beth Finke

Wow! The Nurse Practitioner Schools blog just posted a list of their top 50 autism support and research blogs and our Easter Seals and Autism blog was selected as one of their favorites! The list was compiled for students who are considering going to school to become nurse practitioners. Some of the sites on the list are social networking sites, some opinionated, and others scientific. Ours was recommended for students who want to keep abreast of news and support for families, friends and individuals dealing with autism.

Easter Seals and Autism — For families living with autism, this site provides “help, hope, and answers.” Topics include what happens when children with autism become adults with autism, the link between disabilities and homelessness, book reviews and autism support.

This news about our Top 50 status comes at a time when a nurse practitioner friend of mine is visiting. Through this friend, and from the care our son Gus has received from nurse practitioners over the years, we have come to trust, value and respect the work of nurse practitioners. It is an honor for our Easter Seals and Autism blog to be recognized in this way. It is flattering to think that when students who want to become nurse practitioners have questions about autism, they might just turn to the Easter Seals and Autism blog for “help, hope and answers.”

Easter Seals Central and Southeast Ohio — excellent!

by Beth Finke

I’m pleased to introduce Rob DuVall, Director of Marketing for Easter Seals Central and Southeast Ohio, as a guest blogger today. Rob has a passion for helping others and is dedicated to helping people with autism and other disabilities reach their full potential.

Easter Seals Central and Southeast Ohio – Excellent!
by Rob DuVall

Over the past four years, the adult services program here at Easter Seals Central and Southeast Ohio has been working on upgrading all of our services to help serve our clients better. Through grants with community partners, we are now working to update one of the buildings that will be used to help people with autism.

When the center began in the early 1990s, our main focus was providing medical assistance to adults with profound needs. Now our center has been able to transition into providing social experiences for our clients — outings in the park, festivals, visits to the gym, even a trip to a horse farm!

Easter Seals headquarters has recognized our center with Easter Seals Center of Excellence status. We are pleased to be recognized in this way. The excellence status is a nice way to let all our families know we’re going above and beyond to make sure their loved ones are taken care of.

Will health care reform affect Medicaid?

by Katy Beh Neas

It came as no surprise to those of us here at Easter Seals to hear the very first question at President Obama’s health care town meeting in Montana last Friday. It came from a woman who has a son with autism — she is worried about her son’s health care.

I’m an MSU student. I have a son that suffers from many disabilities. He’s disabled for the rest of his life. He’s 11 years old. He suffers from autism. He has been sick with these ailments ever since he was nine months old. My question to you is, I rely heavily on his Medicaid to support good health care for him. What, with this reform, would happen with his Medicaid?

When it comes to health care, Americans with autism and other disabilities are arguably the most vulnerable population in the nation. Easter Seals believes that health care reform must guarantee that all Americans, including people with autism and other disabilities, have access to high quality, affordable health care that meets their individual needs.

In June, Easter Seals staff testified before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), telling them that meeting the needs of people with autism and other disabilities is an important component of health care reform. Mary Andrus, Easter Seals Assistant Vice President for Government Relations and Co-Chair of the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities’ Health Care Task Force, told committee members that, “an essential element of health care reform is ensuring that vulnerable populations have access to coverage that meets their care needs.”

It sounds like her message got through to the top. At the health care town hall meeting on Friday, President Obama responded to the concerned mother by first thanking her for sharing her story. Then President Obama told her how lucky her son is to have such a heroic mom. After waiting for the applause to die down, the president answered her question about Medicaid.

If you currently qualify for Medicaid — your son currently qualifies for Medicaid, he would continue to qualify for Medicaid. So it would not have an impact on his benefit levels and his ability to get the care that he needs.

Please contact your lawmakers and urge them to support health care reform that promotes quality health care for people with autism and other disabilities.

Dr. Wright interviewed in Education Week

by Beth Finke

Last month, Patricia Wright published a post here called Friendly’s helps kids find Friends Who Care.

FRIENDS WHO CARE® is an interactive educational program designed to help children understand what it means and how it feels to be a young person with a disability. The program shows kids how their peers with autism and other disabilities adapt to live life, go to school make friends and play. The goals of the program are simple: to encourage typically developing children to accept their peers with disabilities as people first, and to find ways to include everyone in school and after-school activities.

Now you can read an Education Week interview where Patricia discusses the curriculum with senior columnist Michael F. Shaughnessy. As the national director of autism services for Easter Seals, Patricia is an old hand at these interviews. She knew just what to say when asked about what was included in the kit and where to find more information.

What types of ancillary materials are available?

The materials include a teacher’s guide, activity sheets, a poster, bookmarks, and online videos.

How can teachers can a copy of this free curriculum?

The fun and colorful components can all be downloaded separately for use at home or in the classroom at www.easterseals.com/friendswhocare.

And of course, she handled the final “Did we forget anything?” question perfectly:

What have I neglected to ask?

Let me tell you a little more about Easter Seals. Easter Seals is a leading non-profit provider of services for individuals with autism, developmental disabilities, physical disabilities and other special needs. For 90 years, Easter Seals has been offering help and hope to children and adults living with disabilities, and to the families who love them. Through training, education and support services, Easter Seals creates life-changing solutions so that people with disabilities can live, learn, work and play.

A thank-you to Eunice

by Beth Finke

Eunice Kennedy Shriver, an advocate for people with physical and developmental disabilities, died yesterday. Shriver was a co-founder of the Special Olympics, an organization she hoped would develop confidence and social skills for people with disabilities.

She lived long enough to see her hopes fulfilled — it’s impossible to count the number of our own Easter Seals clients who benefit from the sports training and competition they receive by participating in Special Olympics. Two perfect examples? Team USA member Jamie Smith, and our blogger Maurice Snell.

Jamie Smith, a graduate of Easter Seals’ Autism Therapeutic School in Chicago, traveled with the Special Olympics to Shanghai, China in September, 2007 and brought home two bronze and two silver medals for powerlifting.

Earlier this year Maurice applauded Jamie Smith’s efforts in a blog post about Special Olympics:

It has helped change the lives of many different people — including my colleague, Jamie Smith. Jamie went to Shanghai, China and did extraordinarily well -– he won four Olympic medals!

Maurice benefited from his own participation in the Special Olympics. He was diagnosed with autism when he was six years old. At age seven, he and his family visited what today is the Easter Seals Therapeutic Day School, a place where students with autism ages 3 to 21 receive not only an education and therapy, but recreational services, too. During Maurice’s 10 years at the school, a team of professionals helped him develop his speech, language and communication skills. They helped with his social skills, too: he learned to swim and play baseball, and competed in the Special Olympics. Today, Maurice works as a classroom aide and mentor at his former school.

I was an active participant in the Special Olympics during my days at the Therapeutic School and Center for Autism Research. I enjoyed the opportunities to participate in various events and meet many different people. To me, Special Olympics kept me going throughout my life. It motivated me to achieve higher standards and make me grow as a man. I’m grateful for Special Olympics and Easter Seals’ involvement in Special Olympics.

I don’t think I can say it any better than Maurice did. So many lives have been changed for the better thanks to Eunice Kennedy Shriver’s work. Thank you, Eunice. You will be missed.

High hopes for Sotomayor

by Beth Finke

Remember the post I wrote about the Autism Society of America endorsing Sonia Sotomayor?

The Autism Society of America, along with dozens of other disability groups, signed a letter supporting Sotomayor’s confirmation. The letter was sent to Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Jeff Sessions (R-AL).

I’m sure ASA members enjoyed seeing Judge Sotomayor sworn in as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court on Saturday! A story in the Los Angeles Times acknowledged that Sotomayor’s experience as a Latina seemed to overshadow discussions about her qualifications during the debate and confirmation hearings. The reporter wrote that other aspects of her background that might influence her decisions were hardly mentioned in the Senate fight.

After she is sworn into office Saturday, she will be the only justice whose first language is not English. She has had diabetes since childhood — a medical condition classified as a disability under federal law.

A story in the New York Times compared Sotomayor’s attitude about her disability to the no-nonsense way she handles herself in court.

Judge Sonia Sotomayor carries a small black travel pouch, not much larger than a wallet. It contains the implements she needs — a blood sugar testing kit, a needle and insulin — to manage diabetes, a disease she has had for 46 years. Friends say she is not shy about using it.

“She’ll be eating Chinese dumplings,” said Xavier Romeu Matta, a former law clerk to the judge, “and she’ll say, ‘Excuse me sweetie,’ and pull out the kit and inject her insulin.”

That no-nonsense attitude, combined with the attention to detail that characterizes her legal opinions, has been a hallmark of Judge Sotomayor’s approach to Type 1 diabetes, according to friends, colleagues and her longtime doctor, Andrew Jay Drexler.

The Los Angeles times story reported that some lawyers are saying Sotomayor’s experience with a chronic illness is bound to influence her views.

“She may be a strong voice for access to healthcare,” said Sylvia Lazos, a law professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. “She will be a real player in the debates over what is a disability.”

The Los Angeles Times article said that advocates for people with disabilities have suffered some major defeats in the Supreme Court the last decade, and they are very hopeful about Sotomayor’s appointment.

“We’re very excited. We don’t feel we have had a champion on the current court,” said Andrew Imparato, president of the American Association of People with Disabilities.