Connecticut Set to Address Wait List

HARTFORD – The governor's budget chief said officials over the next year will find ways to unfreeze a stalled list of more than 2,000 people with intellectual disabilities waiting for services, which advocates have identified as a crisis.
While Ben Barnes stopped short of saying the state will allocate money, he said the Department of Developmental Services will "develop strategies to address and fund" the waiting list – a queue that never moves unless a person's parents or care givers become incapacitated or die.
Barnes' assertion immediately struck a chord with advocates.

Finding Care for a Child with Special Needs Is a Time-Consuming Process

MOUNTVILLE, Pa. -- When friends ask Michelle and Jeff Janidlo to get together for dinner or come to a party the Mountville couple turns them down. It's not that they don't want to socialize it's because the Janidlos can't leave their son at home by himself or with a sitter. Connor Janidlo 13 has severe intellectual and development delays autism and seizure and movement disorders

Our Story: D-Day

Came across an interesting post by Nicole Thibault, who has three sons -- two with special needs, and blogs about parenting.

Everyone loves to hear stories. Stories about how they met the love of their life. Stories from their childhood. Stories about their vacation.
For most parents of children with Special Needs, they have a different kind of story -- a story about when they knew something was not quite right with their child. Unless their baby was born with a condition and they knew about it from Day One, they have a story of their journey to understanding their child's disability.
This is the story of our family's journey.

A Dad Fights Back for His Son with Autism

I confess, I hesitated before posting this piece. I do believe there are two sides to every story. I also don't usually post or watch 17 minutes video clips, but this definitely caught my interest. This is a sad commentary that a parent felt it was necessary to wire his son.

CHERRY HILL, N.J. -- With the statistics that nearly 13 million children suffer in schools and their community every year, we know that bullying happens to children frequently. But a recent NPR story discussed a recent survey, which found that nearly two-thirds of children with autism spectrum disorders have been bullied at some point. And it found that these kids are three times as likely as typical kids to have been bullied in the past month.

Study: Families Providing More Caregiving

More than 40 million Americans care for adults with disabilities and aging individuals, according to a new study that values the volunteer services these family members provide at a whopping $450 billion annually.
The report released this week from AARP finds that the number of family caregivers is on the rise and more is being demanded of them.

Mom of Child with Autism Sues Employer

TYLER, Texas -- The mother of an autistic child has filed a lawsuit against her employer after she was fired for taking unapproved intermittent leave to transport her child to his doctor's visits and therapy.
Arguing violations of the Family and Medical Leave Act, Tomeka White filed suit against Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services on July 5 in the Eastern District of Texas, Tyler Division.

A Place Where Children Can Be Themselves

GLEN ELLYN, Il. -- As the mother of a daughter with autism, Lisa Kelly was tired of going to play centers where other kids stared or were pulled away by their parents.
She's had plenty of days where she's been in a foul mood, her daughter's cranky and she's wanted to get out of the house.
Kelly wanted a place where her daughter could be around other kids just like her and she could find support from other parents — so she created that place herself.

Wisconsin Mother's Call for New Family for Son with Autism Answered with Love

Credit to my husband for finding this story on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel website while reading about his beloved Brewers' victory. This is just an amazing story. Jessie, clearly, is a lucky man.

In 2008, a West Allis woman named Carole Eagleman wrote to this newspaper and made a surprising request. She wanted us to print an article saying her severely autistic son, Jessie, needed a new family.
Carole, then 67 and experiencing health problems, didn't know how long she would be able to care for her 37-year-old son. She didn't trust the government safety net, so she was taking matters into her own hands.
"I know Jess would thrive as part of the right family. He deserves this, if only we can make this happen," her letter said.
It did happen. I wrote the story Carole wanted, and Jessie is indeed thriving now as a cherished member of the Robers family in Burlington.

N.J. Family's Long Quest for Diagnosis

WAYNE, N.J. -- Kerri O'Rourke doesn't waste much time thinking about the lost years or placing blame on the town, the child-study teams or the first few specialists. In the rare instances the Wayne mother looks back instead of pressing forward, it is to be thankful for the people who helped her daughter, Brynn — the preschool teachers and current first grade teachers, the people of "The Doctors" TV show, neuropsychologist Dr. Steven Greco and Caroline Manzo.
Yes, that Caroline Manzo. The "Real Housewives of New Jersey" star was approached by "The Doctors" to be on an episode about children with learning disabilities after her son Albie revealed his learning disability on "RHONJ." As part of "The Doctors" episode, which airs Monday morning, Manzo went to the O'Rourkes' home and talked mother-to-mother. This meeting of strangers with a shared experience helped O'Rourke most. Talking to someone who truly understood, telling Manzo about the nights she lies awake and wonders if God gave her child to the wrong mom, if she can't handle it, if she isn't doing enough.