Dear Friends and Family,

Welcome to my 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 6 years have been an enormous struggle for my family and 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 educational environments, to develop the skills necessary for future employment, and to develop the skills that facilitate full participation in community living.

The change in Anna in the year that she has been attending NSSA has been nothing short of extraordinary.  She has learned, with the help of NSSA's dedicated professionals, how to get a haircut, go to the dentist, ask for what she wants, get dressed by herself, occupy herself independently, try new and different things, color in a coloring book, set the table and countless other skills.  She now wants to be ( and tells us when she does not want to be!) with her sisters, plays fetch with her dog, sorts items and writes her name legibly.  Her tantrums, self stimulatory and self injurious behaviors are occuring at a lesser rate. I know this all sounds very basic and rudimentary to you, and even to me since these are things my typical girls learned in the blink of an eye, but every day when I stop and I think of these gains, the moment is golden.

Most recently (on Father's Day), Anna approached her younger sister who had stolen her pack of chewing gum, looked her in the eye, put out her hand and said "Lily, give it back please".  I know it sounds silly, but I have NEVER seen her do anything like that before!

The Education Program at the Martin C. Barell School utilizes the principles of Applied Behavior Analysis, which is the only intervention scientifically proven to to be effective in the treatment of autism.  The Barell School provides a full-day, 12 month program for preschool and school age children ranging in age from 3-21 years.

Our Adult Services Program at NSSA serves the needs of clients over the age of twenty-one.  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 facilities and staff are to continuing NSSA's adult program, it is unable to secure any public funding due to the current economic climate.  We want them to stay with us; we want to see them learn,  grow, and succeed.  There is a lot of controversy in the autism community today with regard to it's causes, but please remember those individuals who live it every day, 24 hours a day, 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.

On June 6th, 2009 I participated in Jack's Run and placed 1st in my age group. So far, I have raised over $5000 here on my fundraising page and remain deeply committed to raising money for NSSA.  I cannot thank all of you enough for your generosity and kind words of encouragement!  My family and I are truly blessed to have all of you in our lives.

Jack's Run is an annual event which took place on June 6, 2009 at Bar 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.

One in 150 babies born today will be diagnosed with autism, making it more common than pediatric cancer, diabetes and AIDS combined.  Autism impairs the ability to communicate, learn, and form relationships.  There is no known cause or cure.  Symptoms are typically lifelong and can be devastating to the individual and family.  That is why my page remains.  There is NO CURE, and so I remain determined to raise awareness and money for programs such as these that are becoming compromised in today's economy!

Thank you for your support!!!  This page will be up until September 6th so PLEASE forward it to your friends and family so we can continue to change the lives of our kids and families affected by autism!!!  It's so easy - just click "SPONSOR ME NOW" at the top of this page!

With lots of love,

Lisa Walford

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, 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 who you think might want to donate too!