Targeted mentorship. Personalized goals.
Inspired achievements.
// February 24th, 2010 // What's Happening At Ability Specialists
It was a great month for goals at Ability Specialists with 5 participants receiving awards! The ceremony at Fazoli’s was great as always and followed by the Sweetheart dance at the Buck Recreation Center. Pictures of the ceremony and dance are soon to follow so keep checking back!
// February 24th, 2010 // Support Your Community
March 21, 2010
World Down Syndrome Day
In celebration of World Down Syndrome Day, Self-Advocates age 18 and older are encouraged to volunteer in the community to share our message of inclusion and showcase their abilities. We are partnering with several organizations in the community for placement with volunteer opportunities.
Please contact Volunteer & Events Coordinator, Melissa Davis for more details. 303-756-6101 melissad@mhdsa.org
// February 24th, 2010 // Feature Articles
Bold steps are needed to increase housing options for a burgeoning population of adults with autism, researchers say in a report out this week.
Currently, nearly 80 percent of those with autism ages 19 to 30 live with their parents, as few other choices exist outside of institutionalization. Meanwhile, about 500,000 children with the disorder are expected to reach adulthood in the next 15 years.
To meet the growing need, researchers are calling for a national network of nonprofits to collect data on the needs of the adult population with autism in the new report titled Opening Doors: A Discussion of Residential Options for Adults Living with Autism and Related Disorders. Read more: http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2010/02/17/autism-adults-housing/7030/
// February 17th, 2010 // Feature Articles
By Shaun Heasley
Forget the pen and paper at your next IEP meeting. A new iPhone app is designed to organize the process, providing legal tips and a place for notes all in the palm of your hand.
The app for iPhone or iPod Touch organizes the individualized education plan, or IEP, meeting into categories such as “current performance” and “annual goals.” When a category is selected, there is a brief description of the legal requirements and an opportunity for the user to insert a goal or notes. Read more: http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2010/02/12/iep-app/6989/
// February 17th, 2010 // News That Affects You
A group of disabled Coloradans who say their Medicaid benefits were cut without warning is suing the state, claiming the reductions strapped their budgets for in-home health care just before the holidays.
The complaint against the state Department of Health Care Policy and Financing is the second filed this month alleging the Medicaid program is treating disabled people unfairly.
The latest lawsuit isn’t focused on the cuts in benefits — the entire Medicaid program was slammed with budget reductions this fall — but the lack of notice.
Up to 750 disabled residents rely on monthly Medicaid benefits to pay nurses and caregivers to help them bathe, dress, cook and take medications in their homes. They are enrolled in a program that lets them hire, fire and manage their own attendants instead of working through a home-health agency. Read more: http://www.denverpost.com/search/ci_14090786#ixzz0foHDJnGN
// February 17th, 2010 // Support Your Community
Brent’s Place: Dos Casas
Weds, April 7, 2010
Lola Restaurant
Cocktails, Silent Auction and Regional Mexican Plates by Denver’s Top Chefs
// February 17th, 2010 // Feature Articles
A Rose for Christi
WALNUT CREEK — Little girls dream of finding true love, marrying and living happily ever after.
Christi Hockel was no exception.
The youngest of six, she watched her older siblings find mates. She caught bouquets at their weddings and yearned for the day when she would have her own magnificent ceremony.
“I kept saying, ‘Boy, I wish I had a husband who loves me,’ ” said Christi, 31.
Her family and friends were not so sure her dreams would come true because Christi has Down syndrome, a condition that delays mental and physical development. Christi’s mother, a devout Catholic, prayed to St. Thérèse of Liseux to find out if her daughter’s romantic longings would be fulfilled.
“I opened my eyes and there on the floor was a single wrapped rose,” Judie Hockel said.
Christi’s mother saved the tiny fabric flower, believing it to be an answer to her prayer.
Christi’s family helped her accomplish many goals: finishing high school, attending community college, performing in plays, working at Safeway and volunteering at John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek.
They also encouraged her to join the National Down Syndrome Congress, where she could socialize and become a self-advocate. It was through this organization that Christi met the love of her life: Austin Davenport of Dallas, who also has Down syndrome.
“I went to this convention in Minneapolis in 2003 and I fell in love with Austin,” Christi says. See the full article: http://www.contracostatimes.com/news/ci_14383133?source=rss&nclick_check=1
// February 10th, 2010 // Workshops and Seminars
Ronald McDonald House Charities of Denver and Aurora
Saturday, February 27th, Ritz-Carlton, Denver
See all the details at: http://ronaldhouse.org/ball.html
// February 10th, 2010 // News That Affects You
“Intellectual disability” would replace “mental retardation” and Asperger’s syndrome would be folded into “autism spectrum disorders” under proposed changes to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders unveiled Wednesday.
The recommendations are among several sweeping changes psychiatric experts are calling for in the forthcoming fifth edition of the manual known as the DSM, which is expected in May 2013. The DSM serves as the bible for mental health professionals, researchers and insurers as it determines what symptoms are worthy of an official diagnosis. The current edition was released in 1994.
The American Psychiatric Association, which publishes the DSM, is accepting public comment on the proposed changes until April 20 online.
Experts recommend in the draft manual that the term “mental retardation” be eliminated in favor of “intellectual disability,” bringing medical terminology in line with language already used by many governmental and educational institutions. The diagnosis would also gain a broader definition, by encompassing adaptive functioning in addition to IQ . Read More: http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2010/02/10/dsm-proposal/6960/
// February 10th, 2010 // News That Affects You
The Democratic leadership in the U.S. House of Representatives, working with President-elect Barack Obama, just released its long awaited second economic stimulus package American Recovery and Reinvestment Bill of 2009. This bill and a similar one in the Senate are expected to move quickly through the legislative process so that President Obama in mid February can sign it into law.
Both proposed federal bills have numerous provisions that identify increase spending on disability programs. Additionally, other funding increases to states and communities could also be utilized to provide numerous types of assistance to people with disabilities and the programs that support them.
However, in a contradiction of policy and priorities, while the federal government looks to enhance the reinvestment of money into programs that support children and adults with intellectual disabilities Colorado is looking to “freeze” and ultimately decrease such services. Read the full posting: http://denver.yourhub.com/Aurora/Stories/News/Government/Story~569150.aspx?referrer=newsvine
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