Dear Friends and Family,
Welcome to my 2010 fundraising page for Jack's Run! I am writing to ask for your help in supporting Nassau Suffolk Services for Autism/The Martin C. Barell School.
As many of you know, my daughter Anna was diagnosed with autism in 2002 at the age of 2 1/2. These past 7 years have been an enormous struggle for my family as well as for many other families. NSSA was founded in 1983 to provide services that meet the unique needs of children and families affected by autism. The goals of these services are to enable individuals with autism to participate more fully in family life, to prepare for the transition to increasingly less restrictive environments, to develop the skills necessary for future employment, and to develop the skills that faciilitate full participation in community living.
To be honest, Anna is having a very difficult year. Her behaviors have escalated and managing them has become quite a challenge. Unfortunately, this tends to happen when children with autism begin approaching puberty. She is also having problems with her physical health that we cannot seem to pinpoint due to her lack of communication skills. We are working very hard to implement new behavior plans and visiting physicians who we hope can help her.
I would be lost right now without the AMAZING teachers and staff at NSSA. They have been unbelievably supportive through this and have stuck by Anna and our family every step of the way. They attend doctor's appointments with me and work themselves to near exhaustion trying to get her back on track. They help her work through these behaviors at home and are working with us to develop better strategies that will hopefully decrease her meltdowns and self -injurious behaviors.
Anna does continue to improve in other ways and is developing new interests that will help her to function better in our everyday environment. She began horseback riding over the summer and absolutely LOVES it! Words cannot describe the change in her when she mounts a horse - the effect these beautiful animals have on people with disabilities is just fascinating! She continues to enjoy swimming and bowling in addition to participating in a special needs soccer league in the spring and fall.
The Education Program at the Martin C. Barell School utilizes the principles of Applied Behavior Analysis, which is the only intervention scientifically proven to be effective in the treatment of autism. The Barell School provides a full-day, 12 month program for preschool and school aged children ranging in age from 3-21 years.
Our Adult Services Program at NSSA serves the needs of clients over the age of 21. Among the services currently offered within this program are job sampling, volunteer service, vocational training and community integration training. This particular program will ultimately grow to encompass the LARGEST population of NSSA's clients. That being said, I am asking from my heart for your support! As committed as this wonderful agency and it's staff are to continuing NSSA's adult program, it is struggling financially due to the current economic climate. Please help them to stay with us - we want to watch them learn, grow and succeed! There is so much controversy in the autism community today with regard to it's causes, but please remember those individuals who live it every day, 24/7, and the quality of life they so deserve.
Additionally, NSSA also provides outside consultation services to school districts across Long Island, respite services, weekend recreation programs, summer programs and assistive technology programs.
Last year I participated in Jack's Run and placed 1st in my age group! Woo-hoo! However, an even bigger and better thrill was the $5000 plus that I raised on my fundraising page! Double woo-hoo!!! I remain deeply committed to raising money for our NSSA family and hope that you, my fabulous friends and family, will help me again this year to EXCEED my goal of $4000!
Jack's Run is an annual event that takes place at North Hempstead Town Beach in Port Washington, Long Island. This 5K Run/Walk was inspired by Michael and Ondine Miranda to honor their nephew Jack, a fellow student of Anna's at NSSA.
So on May 22nd I will once again don my overpriced (but so cushiony and pretty!) Avias and kick some serious you-know-what! Why am I engaging in such a humbling and torturous activity? Because I am deeply committed to raising tons of money for NSSA (and I need to stay skinny for my 25th high school reunion this summer :) ! )!
There is NO CURE for autism, and so I remain determined to raise awareness and funds for programs such as these that are becoming compromised in today's economic climate!
Your donation means so much! So much that I have made it SO INCREDIBLY EASY for you all to contribute! Just click " SPONSOR ME NOW" at the top of this page and pay it forward!
Thank you for your support!
With lots of love,
Lisa
MISSION STATEMENT:
Nassau Suffolk Services for Autism (NSSA) offers hope to people with autism and their families by providing high quality life-long support through services which enable people with autism to function better in everyday life.
NSSA offers the most advanced treatment and training programs for the benefit of people with autism, and will continue to pioneer, through research and comprehensive treatment models which can be adopted nationally.
Donating through this website is simple, fast and totally secure. It is also the most efficient way to support my fundraising efforts.
Many thanks for your support -- and don't forget to forward this to anyone you think might want to donate too!