Check out these amazing holiday events!

Sensory Santa

Orlando residents! On December 16th come and meet Santa at Speak Easy Solutions! Your child will be able to meet Santa in a sensory friendly environment with treats! You don't want to miss out! 

For more information on how to get tickets, click here!

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FAU CARD iRISE2 Mentor Information Session

Join for an online zoom workshop provided by FAU CARD regarding their iRISE2 program! iRISE2, Interest and Relationships Impacting Social Engagement and Employment, Mentoring Program provides high functioning individuals diagnosed with autism the opportunity to engage in a supportive one-to-one mentoring relationship. This online session will go over everything you need to know to become a mentor!

For more information or to register click here!

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Karaoke Christmas Toy Drive

Attention Atlanta area residents! Join a festive Christmas Karaoke/Open Mic event at Twelve Midtown, Autograph Collection in Atlanta, GA, USA on December 10th! Spread the holiday cheer by participating in this Christmas Toy Drive. But don't forget to get your vocals ready and bring a smile to a child's face by donating new, unwrapped toys. Your generosity will make a difference in our community. Don't miss out on this opportunity to give back and celebrate the joy of giving.

For more information or to get tickets click here!

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Holiday Cheer with Friends

Tampa residents F.R.I.E.N.D.S. will be having 3 amazing events this month!! There will be a dinner party tomorrow! Another dinner party on December 15th and then a breakfast with Santa on December 16th! Be sure to check this out and take your family! 

For more information on any of these events click here!

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Article Alert!

Strategies for Navigating the Holidays 

with a Special Needs Child

December has started and that means lots of holidays are approaching or have begun! This can be a bit of a difficult time for children or teens with special needs or sensory issues. There may be too many people gathered together or too much going on. It may be difficult managing your child during the holiday season but MKSA has amazing tips for you ! Some of these tips include making holiday cards for family members in advance, creating an organized calendar, or meeting a quiet Santa. There are more tips that may be very helpful for you so make sure you click down below and read this article for yourself!

Read Article

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This Week's Program Spotlight: AccessAbility!

Meet one of our programs: AccessAbility! AccessAbility is one of our parent programs designed to help parents find an easier way to access the right special needs resources to design a plan for you and your child. This can be a difficult and overwhelming time, but AccessAbility can help make this process easier for you! With AccessAbility, access the resources you need to make a plan for your child. 

For more information click here!

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This Week's Spotlight: Faithful and Able

Meet one of our programs: Faithful and Able. Faithful and Able is one of our programs designed for churches, as it provides the necessary curriculum for churches to provide the necessary resources and support to special needs families. It also offers one on one consulting to help apply these methods on Sundays. 

To learn more about this program click here!

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ABLE United

ABLE United, Florida’s qualified ABLE program, was designed for Floridians with a variety of disabilities including those diagnosed with Down syndrome, autism, cerebral palsy, cognitive and developmental disabilities, as well as mental health disorders.  

ABLE accounts are a tax-free savings and investment account that generally do not count as a resource for public benefit programs such as Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income. Funds can be used to pay for qualified disability expenses like doctor’s appointments, transportation, housing, education, and even everyday living expenses including groceries. 

For more information click here.

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ABLE Today

Not a Florida resident? Visit ABLEtoday.org for more information. ABLE Today is the national ABLE initiative lead by The National Association of State Treasurers Foundation (NAST Foundation). 

For more information click here.

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AUCD Weekly -12/06/23

Announcements

AIR-P Presents: Health Outcomes for Sexually-Diverse and Gender-Diverse Autistic Adults

Tuesday, December 12, 2023, 4:00 pm - 5:00 pm ET

We know that a substantial number of autistic people are sexually-diverse (e.g., gay, lesbian, bisexual, pansexual, asexual) or gender-diverse (e.g., transgender, gender non-conforming), but what do we know about their mental and physical health? Dr. Graham Holmes will discuss the current state of the literature and present findings from two studies that used innovative methods to learn about health disparities for this population. 

Call for Submissions: AUCD 360 - December 2023

Deadline: December 15, 2023

We invite you to submit articles the December issue of AUCD 360. The AUCD 360 Newsletter is a great opportunity to present faculty awards, changes in leadership, new research developments, events, and other accomplishments of interest to our entire AUCD network. You may submit your article(s) via the AUCD 360 Submission page on our website.

View the full list of Announcements.

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Funding

AUCD Releases Request for One-Year Proposals on AAC Use and Development of a Peer Support Model

Deadline: December 18, 2023

Award Ceiling: $300,000

AUCD is seeking proposals for a contracted entity to fulfill a scope of work central to an effort federally funded by the AoD, Administration for Community Living (ACL) that will seek to co-create a nationwide comprehensive, consensus-based peer support model to advance the use of AAC. This one-year planning project is anticipated to yield a rich source of recommendations for peer support models anticipated to improve the lives of AAC users.

AHRQ Challenge: Harnessing Data Visualization to Advance Equity in Clinical Services

Deadline: January 5, 2024

Award Ceiling: $440,000

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) is announcing a Challenge competition to accelerate the identification and elimination of disparities in the receipt of clinical preventive services. Preventive services include, but are not limited to, immunizations, screening tests, and counseling on healthy behaviors. Receiving preventive services can reduce the incidence of serious health conditions and save lives.

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Resources

Tuesdays with Liz: How OSERS is Improving Education for People with Disabilities

Check out the latest episode of Tuesdays with Liz, “How OSERS is Improving Education for People with Disabilities,” to learn more about the current projects the US Department of Education OSERS Program is working on to improve education and transition services for people with disabilities. Find the full episode on YouTube. 

Center for Transition to Adult Health Care for Youth with Disabilities Launches New Website

The Center for Transition to Adult Health Care for Youth with Disabilities, a national resource center funded by ACL’s Administration on Disabilities (AoD), has launched a new website to help young people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) direct their own transition to the adult health care system. Developed for and by youth with I/DD, the site has a variety of both person-centered and culturally competent tools and resources to help support youth, their families, and health care professionals through this important transition. The site also includes resources developed by Center partners, including Family Voices, Got Transition, SPAN Parent Advocacy Network, and two AoD-funded University Centers of Excellence in Development Disabilities (UCEDDs): the Institute for Human Development at University of Missouri-Kansas City and the Waisman Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Both of these UCEDDs have done extensive work in the field of health care transitions for youth with I/DD.

Click here to read more of this issue!

Barrier Free Vaccine Clinic Dec. 15 in Columbia

Healthy Laughter

Able SC Barrier Free Vaccine Clinic

FREE Flu and COVID-19 Vaccines 

will be available! 

Get your flu and COVID-19 shots! Able SC is partnering with Healthy Laughter to host Barrier-free a vaccine clinic. Flu and COVID-19 vaccines will be available for ages 3 and up! 

Individuals will receive a $20 gift card upon receipt of their FREE influenza and/or COVID-19 vaccine, while supplies last. That means you could get up to $40 in gift cards if you get both vaccinations.

ASL and Spanish interpreters will be available.

Don't miss your chance to protect yourself and others from the flu this fall and winter. 

Questions? 

Contact us at 1-800-787-6046

Friday, Dec. 15, 4pm- 6:30pm

5124 Fairfield Rd. 

Columbia, SC 29203

Light refreshments will be served.

Adaptive Gifts for $100 or Less

December 5, 2023

PRODUCTS

Seven Holiday Gift Ideas for Wheelchair Users 

-- $100 or Less

Almost everything seems expensive these days, so we went searching for the best deals on adaptive products. Here are seven reasonably-priced items — from wheelchair slippers, to a rain jacket for your legs, to a no-spill hot water kettle and more.

SUBMISSION OPPORTUNITY

Share Your #WheelchairLife Hacks

1. Loop a reusable shopping bag handle over the water bottle.
2. Twist until handle is tight.
3. Lift with transfer board.

Wheelchair user Vince Stark shared this trick for getting your water bottle out of the center console without transferring back into the car, and we want to hear other ingenious ideas. Share your own #WheelchairLife Hacks for a chance to be featured in an upcoming issue of New Mobility. Send us an email with one to three photos that show your hack along with a caption.

PRO TIPS

Fighting for the Equipment We Need

Regan Linton was excited when it came time to get a new wheelchair, but the process of ordering one quickly burst her bubble. “Getting the equipment we need to maximize our health and productivity should be the standard; sadly it has become a privilege,” she writes. Instead of accepting this sorry state of affairs, Linton decided to fight back and be the squeaky wheel advocating for her own needs and those of the broader community.

Click here to read more of this issue!

More amazing things at AW!

NEW VORTEX RELEASE

Click here to watch video!

Tracy Slepcevic

How Biomedical Interventions are Life Changing! This conversation is an inspirational testimonial of how biomedical interventions helped her son lose his Autism symptoms! The Author of Warrior Mom (https://tinyurl.com/2s4e8bbw) details her journey of research, and against all odds perseverance. Some of the ideas we discussed: stem cell therapy, hyperbaric chambers, diet and nutrition, IV Ozone Therapy and more.

Listen Now 

For the Parents

2023 MHA Winter Break Camp

Orlando residents! Michael Academy invites you to enroll your child in their Winter Break camp starting on the 19th-29th. Their objective is to increase social skills in individuals with intellectual disabilities (Autism, down syndrome, Cerebral palsy) by providing various activities in the community with a focus on daily living skills to enhance their lives. They will have fun activities such as arts & crafts, community events, and teach social skills and daily living skills. Click here to register. 

Special Needs Child Care Connections: 

Finding and/or providing child care

Join Milestone Magazine for an online session this Saturday December 16th at 12pm. These sessions are for families and providers to air their concerns about finding or providing care. They also are inviting childcare training providers to these events. Click here to get more information. 

Click here to read more from Abilities Workshop!

Abilities Workshop Inc.

407-951-6117

www.Abilitiesworkshop.com

AUCD Weekly

November 29, 2023

Announcements

Listening Session Request

High Alpha Innovation is partnering with a national health insurance firm to identify new solutions and programs to help SNAP-eligible people with disabilities get into, use, and renew the program. The most important part of the effort is to identify the right problems to work on, which can only be done by listening to the experiences of people who are eligible for, are using, or previously used SNAP. They would like to spend 45 mins to one hour with a group of individuals, or 20-30 minutes with individuals, who have experience in SNAP. Participants will receive a $50 stipend. The goal is to listen to first hand experiences of how people from across a diversity of demographics and circumstances are experiencing the program today and what could be made better. Please email Liz Schneider at eschneider@aucd.org if you can connect us to potential interviewees.

2023 National Survey on Health and Disability

The University of Kansas Institute for Health and Disability Policy Studies — funded by ACL's National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR) — is seeking adults with disabilities to complete the 2023 National Survey on Health and Disability (NSHD). The NSHD gives voice to the concerns of people with disabilities and documents their experiences with a variety of issues, including access to health care, insurance coverage, housing, transportation, Long COVID, employment, education, and more. The survey is open to U.S. adults 18 and older with any disability and/or health condition. For more information, please call 855-556-6328 (Voice/TTY) or email healthsurvey@ku.edu. Participants may complete the survey by phone.

View the full list of Announcements.

Funding

AUCD Releases Request for One-Year Proposals on AAC Use and Development of a Peer Support Model

Deadline: December 18, 2023

Award Ceiling: $300,000

AUCD is seeking proposals for a contracted entity to fulfill a scope of work central to an effort federally funded by the AoD, Administration for Community Living (ACL) that will seek to co-create a nationwide comprehensive, consensus-based peer support model to advance the use of AAC. This one-year planning project is anticipated to yield a rich source of recommendations for peer support models anticipated to improve the lives of AAC users.

Klingenstein Third Generation Foundation - Mental Health Care Research

Deadline: January 15, 2024

Award Ceiling: $100,000

The Klingenstein Third Generation Foundation awards fellowship grants annually to outstanding post-doctoral candidates who are investigating the causes, prevention, and treatment of children and adolescents with ADHD or depression, especially those from low-income families and under-resourced communities, or other marginalized populations that may have limited supports and resources.

Resources

Think College Resource: Guides for Program Development

Think College recently published two resources that are "must reads" if you are planning to start a college or university program for students with intellectual disability. One offers a great overview of important steps and a short summary of the key decisions to make in each step. The other goes into more detail, and shares extensive lists of additional resources that will be relevant for each stage of program development.

Connecting People with Disabilities to Local Community Resources

Watch these new videos to learn how the Disability Information and Access Line (DIAL) helps people with disabilities and their loved ones by connecting them to requested community supports. Launched in 2021 to help people with disabilities access COVID-19 vaccinations, DIAL also provides information about essential services such as transportation, housing support, disability rights and more. Call, text or videophone (ASL users) 888-677-1199 or visit dial.acl.gov for more information or to start an online chat.

Click here to read more of this issue!

Bridge Access Program increases access to vaccines!

Bridge Access Program 

Increases Access to Vaccines

COVID-19 infections continue to rise in South Carolina. Currently South Carolina's daily hospital admissions average is 59 people per day. People with disabilities are considered a high-risk group for severe sickness and death caused by COVID-19. Receiving a vaccination against COVID-19 is one of the best ways to protect yourself and those around you from the virus. COVID-19 vaccines work well to prevent severe sickness, keep you out of the hospital, and avoid death. Getting your COVID-19 vaccine can also help keep you safe from Long COVID. Even if you’ve previously had a COVID-19 infection or shot, receiving the 2023-2024 updated vaccine for ongoing protection against the illness is important.

Do not let fear of a cost prevent you from receiving your COVID-19 vaccination. The COVID-19 vaccinations will remain available free of charge to people who have insurance. The Bridge Access Program launched by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Disease Control will keep vaccines free for adults 18+ who are under-insured or without insurance through December 2024. Children whose parents or guardians cannot afford the cost of vaccines can be covered under the Vaccines for Children Program.

To find out where you can get your updated COVID and flu vaccines, go to Vaccines.gov and enter your zip code to bring up a list of locations near you. This website also allows you to filter sites by their ability to vaccinate children and/or whether they participate in the Bridge Access Program.

Able SC has numerous Barrier-free vaccine clinics planned for the fall and winter. Please follow our social media channels for announcements of dates and times. Vaccinations received at Able SC Barrier-free vaccine clinics remain free of charge.

Have questions about the COVID-19 vaccine?

Check out the South Carolina Disability Vaccine Access Network's Frequently asked questions or call our hotline at 1-800-787-6046.

Contact Us

References: 

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2023, September 12). “Updated COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendations Are Now Available.”
• Disability Vaccine Access Network