Speaker Christine Quinn Honors NAA New York Metro Chapter and Issues Proclamation

PROCLAMATION

The Council of the City of New York is proud to observe Autism Awareness Month and to honor the members of the New York Metro Chapter of the National Autism Association for providing outstanding support to all individuals affected by autism; and

WHEREAS: Autism Awareness Month is an opportunity for families, friends, and local communities to raise public awareness about autism, the fastest growing development disability in the country. Today, more than 1.5 million individuals in the United States are affected by autism. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that one in 110 children had autism—up from their previous estimate of one in 150. The stress on families affected by autism is immense. It is our hope that promoting greater awareness of autism will lead to more funding for research and eventually a known cause and then a cure; and

WHEREAS: There is no known cure for autism yet, but experts agree that early intervention is important in addressing the symptoms associated with autism. When families and caregivers begin looking into the various treatments available for autism spectrum disorders, they will be surprised at the wide range of options out there. Unfortunately, what works for some families, may not work for others. Since individuals with autism spectrum disorders are not exactly the same, treatment plans need to be made specific for each individual; and

WHEREAS: The New York Metro Chapter of the National Autism Association provides exemplary service to residents through the five boroughs of New York City, Long Island, Westchester, and Rockland County. Since its inception, it has educated and empowered families affected by autism and other neurobiological disorders, while advocating on behalf of those who cannot fight for their own rights. They have demonstrated again and again that autism is not a life-long incurable genetic disorder, but one that is bio-medically definable and treatable; and

WHEREAS: The New York Metro Chapter of the National Autism Association has also raised public and professional awareness of environmental toxins as causative factors in neurological damage that often results in an autism or related diagnosis. We commend them for their unwavering commitment and encouragement to those in the autism community to never give up in their search to help their loved ones reach their full potential; and

WHEREAS: Autism Awareness Month raises public awareness about autism and its effects and offers hope to all who deal with the hardships of this disorder by uniting the autism community to address this urgent global health crisis. Together, we will solve this puzzle; now, therefore

BE IT KNOWN: That the Council of the City of New York most gratefully honors the New York Metro Chapter of the National Autism Association and proclaims the month of April 2010 to be Autism Awareness Month in the City of New York.

Signed this 1st day of April in the year Two Thousand Ten.

_____________________________
CHRISTINE C. QUINN, Speaker
For the Entire Council

Autism Awareness Month Commemorated at City Hall

Kim Stagliano receives Spirit of Hope Award from Commissioner Matthew Sapolin and Sabeeha Rehman

On Monday, April 19, 2010, Commissioner Matthew Sapolin, Mayor's Office for People with Disabilities and the National Autism Association - New York Metro Chapter commemorated the Autism Awareness Month in the Council Chamber at City Hall.

Christine C. Qinn, Speaker For the Entire Council, issued a Proclamation honoring NAA New York Metro Chapter for providing outstanding support to all indviduals affected by autism.

The National Autism Association New York Metro Chapter honored Kim Stagliano, an extraordinary “autism mom” and the Managing Editor of Age of Autism. See video of the award ceremony on Age of Autism.

Commissioner Matthew Sapolin, who is vision impaired, shared his personal story of coping with disability and promised to join NAA New York Metro in their mission to support families and individuals affected by autism.

Sabeeha Rehman, the President of NAA New York Metro Chapter announced new programs and initiatives to help New York area families affected by autism spectrum disorders:
• An award of at least $4,000 to help families with children on the autism spectrum pay for therapeutic education and/or medical treatments which they otherwise could not afford.
• A collaborative program with Dr. Asma Sadiq, Director of the Division of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics at Beth Israel Medical Center, whereby NAA NY Metro Chapter will offer bi-monthly educational programs to the Beth Israel community.
• Three to four workshops a year on parental training, recreational therapy, and sports & fitness.
• An online resource directory for parents.
• Posting of links to medical articles on the Chapter website.
• Post and link the Chapter and its resources on the website of the Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities

Parents Kim Mack Rosenberg, Mary Hernandez, and Lisa Rudley shared their stories of inspiration and hope, recounting their journeys in helping their ASD children improve dramatically. The audience was enthralled to hear Lexi Rudley, a nine year old, talk about being a sibling to a child with autism. The evening ended with NAA’s Chase the Hope video¸ music, and a display by Rosa Martinez, of the work of artists on the spectrum.

Lisa Rudley, Master of Ceremonies, led the evening infused with the spirit of hope and inspiration. The event was attended by representatives from City agencies, United Nations, providers and caregivers, advocates, the media, other non-profit groups, and families affected by autism.

To see photo album, visit our Facebook

TOUCHING HUMANITY’S ARTS and THEATRE PROGRAMS ("T.H.A.T. Program")

The T.H.A.T. Program will be running Movement and Music classes for children ages 6-12 with autism on Saturdays from 10:30-11:30am at 939 8th Ave at 55th Saturdays. Groups will be small – only 6 to 8 students. For information, contact Michael A. Pizzi, PhD at Touchhumanity@aol.com. Dr. Pizzi is the founder of Touching Humanity, Inc. ("THI"), the non-profit offering these exciting new classes.

The T.H.A.T. Program is a new program focusing on the use of the performing arts with people on the autism spectrum. Their acting and movement classes include programs that introduce your child to warm-ups, improv games, character building exercises and scene study. This interactive, non-competitive program is structured so the students work with each other to build confidence and self-esteem.

The arts, particularly the performing arts, assist in the development of the child in emotional, physical, social, intellectual and psychological areas. The arts programs are non-competitive and focus on developmental and personal growth. Whether on a one to one basis for the more impaired child or within a group setting, arts programming can

(1) assist in social skill building and teach appropriate interactions with others;
(2) engage children in self expression through a non-threatening medium;
(3) improve abilities such as Skills for Expressing Feelings, Social Relationship Skills, Organizational Skills, Decision Making, Problem Solving Skills and Conflict Management Skills;
(4) provide an outlet for creativity, joy and hope;
(5) engage children in developing collaboration and sharing;
(6) increase and improve self-esteem

THI is a non-profit organization committed to promoting disability awareness and social justice through the arts and education. The basic mission of THI is to develop programs that serve the artistic and expressive needs of children and adults with disabilities; create new and adapt previously performed works that are disability themed; create opportunities for actors with disabilities; and to educate through the arts, symposia, festivals and conferences.

T.H.A.T. Program was developed by Dr. Pizzi, who is both an occupational therapist and a performing artist to provide artistic outlets for children and adults with special needs.

All classes are co-developed with Dr. Pizzi and overseen by him. The instructors have backgrounds in the performing arts, special education, ABA method, occupational therapy and prior work with children with disabilities.

The NAA New York Metro chapter does not endorse any treatment, therapy, diet, protocol, nor any provider, individual or group. Any information provided at NAA-NYM presentations, meetings, on our website, or on our blog is provided for informational purposes only. Parents must of course make their own decisions concerning any treatment, therapy or provider. NAA-NYM recommends that families consult with an experienced doctor or other professional before commencing treatments or therapies for their children.

NAA NY Chapter President on NBC for Autism Awareness Month

Sabeeha Rehman, the NAA NY Chapter president was recently on NBC New York's Debrief with David Ushery Recognizing Autism Awareness Month.

Go to NBC New York to watch the video.

Bowlathon Success -- Thanks to Everyone!

Bowlathon! March 21st, 2010, Bowlmor Lanes, Manhattan. Here is a recap from Peggy Becker, NAA-NY Metro’s Secretary:

Wow!!!! What an exciting day. Stuart Flaum and I, with the help of Liz Elting and others on our board, had been preparing for this, our first fundraiser, for quite some time and at last the day arrived. Our Bowlathon was this past Sunday.

We asked people to organize teams that then solicited donations from their friends, family, etc. Our goal was to raise $30,000 and, with donations still coming in, we are at almost $53,000! We used Firstgiving (platform to support online giving) to collect donations - here is a link to our page.

It was a great fun, family event - each team had a lane - we took over a whole floor of the bowling alley, 22 lanes - and everyone bowled. The bowling alley gave us a discounted rate. We played mellow jazz, turned off the flashing neon lights and had a quiet room (AKA the VIP room) to escape to if the din overwhelmed anyone.

Our own Kirstin - who is an amazing chef - created delicious breakfast food that was diet sensitive - GFCF and SF (soy free). Another corporate sponsor donated lemonade stand kits as party favors for the kids. Another friend helped me make a DVD slide show with images from our corporate sponsors, our fundraisers and images from our events over the last year or so.

We felt the love! We had over 100 people bowling and over 500 donors - many of them new to our organization. It was such a great event and we are really excited for the programs that we can initiate with the money we raised. Check out our Facebook Fan Page for more photos from the event!

A huge thank you to our sponsors:

• TransPerfect
• Special Needs Family Planning at AXA
• Createabilities
• Glow Gluten Free
• Hopewell Pharmacy
• Jennifer Fiorentino Campagna - Halstead Property LLC
• Mark and Dara Berger
• Mark Freilich, M.D., Total Kids Developmental Pediatric Resources
• Saqib and Saadia Rehman
• S.N.A.C.K. - Special Needs Activity Center for Kids
• What to Feed Your Kids
• Next Generation Beverage

And to our bowling teams:

• Floortime Friends
• Adaptations
• Im So Elmys Special Services
• Luger’s Baracudas
• Team Rehman
• Team Alex
• Team Createabilities
• Team Daniel
• Team Henry & Scott
  
• Team Jojo
• Team Learning Spring
• Team Leslie
• Team Michael
• The GF Cereal Bowlers
• The Jaguars
• The Rebecca Ballers
• Transperfect
• What to Feed Your Kids

And, of course, to our donors (too numerous to list)!

Facebook and Twitter and NAA-NY Metro

Learn more from NAA-NY Metro and share with your friends.

NAA-NY Metro Chapter is now on Facebook and Twitter - Click on the buttons above.

If you are on Facebook, remember to "fan" the NAA-NY Metro Chapter's facebook fan page. Check regularly for posts -- share those with your friends, tweet them etc. We are posting lots of interesting items there and adding more all the time.

If you are on Twitter we are @NatlAutismNYM - follow us and retweet our posts to your followers!

April 14th Screening of "The Horse Boy"

In honor of her birthday and to show her support of SNACK (Special Needs Activity Center for Kids), SNACK parent, Jennifer Ford is holding a Private Screening of "The Horse Boy"

Marymount School

(@Fifth Avenue & 84th St.)

Wednesday, April 14, 2010
6:00pm - Doors open
6:30pm - Movie begins
Cocktails and Hors d'oeuvres will immediately follow

The Horse Boy" follows one Texas couple and their autistic son as they trek on horseback through Outer Mongolia to try to treat his condition with shamanic healing. The film touches many topics: autism, relationships between humans and animals and humans and nature, cultural differences and different ways of being (autistic vs. normal, or "neurotypical"), and the nature of healing.

SNACK provides unique programming to support children on the spectrum and their families . . . From SNACK’s website:

"SNACK after school and weekend programs, geared toward children ages 3-18 with special needs, are designed and staffed to address challenging behavioral issues, increase skill levels and promote improved social interaction. SNACK provides a variety of group and individual activities including sports, art, music, yoga, movement, drama and swimming. Our high ratio of student to staff (2:1), class size limit (maximum 8 per class), and use of the principles of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) to manage behavior and provide reinforcement, enables children who participate to make progress. SNACK provides children and their parents with a nurturing environment all too often unavailable to those most in need of these services. At SNACK, you can be confident that your children are safe, happy, and having fun!"

Please RSVP before or by Friday, April 9th
Click HERE to reserve your seat for a suggested $50 tax-deductible donation

Prefer email or phone?
info@snacknyc.com or 212-439-9996

Join us in toasting Jennifer's birthday and her generosity!