Autism Support Group Meeting on September 12, 2016

Autism Support Group Meeting

Monday, September 12 – 7:00-8:30pm

3033 N. Towne Avenue, Pomona

Featured Speaker: Linda Higgins, Educational and IHSS Advocate

Hope Consulting and Advocacy, Founded March 2014

Linda Higgins got into advocacy as a result of having had their daughter, Megan Hope, who had Down syndrome and autism.  Thanks to her, they have fostered several children with special needs and adopted three of them. They lost Megan Hope on December 27, 2013 to a pulmonary embolism.  Their advocacy is now her legacy. Linda has taken many classes and attended numerous workshops to learn advocacy, including having completed the Parent Advocacy and Mentoring (PAM) training through Special Needs Network and Special Education Advocate Training (SEAT) training through Council of Parents, Advocate, and Attorneys (COPAA).

Linda’s kids have had many different diagnoses, including Down syndrome, autism, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder partial, emotional disturbance, Cerebral Palsy, Traumatic Brain Injury, sensory processing disorder (SPD), central auditory processing disorder (CAPD), and dyslexia.  All of them have needed significant advocacy to get their academic needs met, and two have required IHSS services.  Megan had Down syndrome, autism, asthma, a heart condition, feeding tube, SPD, was not potty trained, and more, yet she was denied the first three times they applied for IHSS. They didn’t understand the program, and was told they should apply, but that was before Facebook and all the easy methods of learning via the internet. Linda has learned that if the parents don’t know what IHSS provides and why they deserve the services, they will be given nothing. She has worked to get more services and has learned what needs be done to improve hours. And now, she uses that knowledge to help parents.

We hope that you’ll plan to attend this important support group meeting. Please RSVP by September 9^th to Nicole Aptekar at naptekar@gmail.com

www.advocacyforautism.com

Free Movie Tickets to see VAXXED

Advocacy For Autism is sponsoring FREE tickets to the movie VAXXED at Laemmle's Claremont 5 movie theatre. To get free tickets, just visit www.advocacyforautism.com and click on the "Contact Us" link and submit for free tickets. (Limited to two per person/while supplies last).

Autism Support Group Meetings

Monday, July 18 – 7:00-8:30pm

Monday, August 15 – 7:00-8:30pm

3033 N. Towne Avenue, Pomona

When you care for a child with autism you know how challenging a typical day can be for your family. It can be even more so, if you’re planning an activity outside of your regular routine, such as going to an amusement park, a family vacation, or even to the movies. You often have to plan ahead and anticipate things that may happen and how to deal with them when they do. At times it can seem overwhelming. We’d like to offer some encouragement to families through our autism support group meetings and support network, Advocacy for Autism. We will share information, tips, resources, successes, challenges and support.

Monday, July 18^th, we will have an informative presentation from People’s Care Autism Services on ABA and social skills.

Monday, August 15^th, we will focus on preparing for your child’s IEP with a presentation from a Special Needs Attorney who can offer guidance and insight.

We hope that you’ll plan to attend an upcoming support group meeting and meet some new friends. Please RSVP at least one day prior to Nicole Aptekar at naptekar@gmail.com.

IKEA

Since, setting up Advocacy for Autism, this has been one of the first posts I wanted to create for this blog. One of my intentions for this blog is to bring to light those companies that are doing right by the autism community, and those that need some work. Think of it as a "hit" or "miss" of autism awareness. For this particular post, I see IKEA as being a "hit" in the most positive sense, and making a once challenging situation for my child with autism, right.

Not too long ago, we took our three children to IKEA and knew our first stop would be at the children's play area, which I believe they call Smaland. Our other two children had been there before several times, but this was the first time that we took our daughter with autism there. She is toilet-trained and can follow the rules of the children's play area. The only thing she objected to, was the stamp they wanted to place on her hand. Now, many of you who are reading this already know the outcome of this scenario once the stamp came toward her. She screamed, "no stamp" and wanted something else instead (in gymnastics she receives a sticker instead of a stamp). The employees working the play area (front desk) stated that she had to have a stamp to go in and that was the policy. I sadly took her away, not wanting to take on a fight or make a scene at the time, and we went to the cafeteria upstairs instead. Our other two children enjoyed the play area. I felt so bad for our little girl that she could not participate with her typical peers just because she didn't want a stamp on her hand.

Now the good news....I mulled this over for a couple of days and decided that this wasn't right and that someone at IKEA in a more senior position should know about it. I contacted the appropriate person, which happened to be a media relations person, and also noticed that one of IKEA's causes is supporting children with autism. I decided that they should know our story. Almost immediately the media relations person forwarded my email to the customer relations manager at IKEA. She called me (several times) and we finally spoke about what had transpired at her IKEA store. She said how sorry she was and that they have workarounds in place to accommodate children with special needs. I also mentioned how other companies use wristbands and that this might be a better route to go for all children, so everyone is treated equally.

Fast forward....Our next visit to IKEA's Smaland was a very pleasant experience. We once again took our three children and noticed their policy had changed for the better and they were now issuing wristbands, instead of stamps, to ALL children. Our children went on to play happily, and we were so relieved as parents.

I encourage all parents out there to speak out if they see something that seems unjust to their child with special needs. You might find that if you speak out for your child, you'll be pleasantly surprised at the response you eventually receive in return.