Celebrate Differences Disability Awareness Center

Celebrate Differences

May is Prader-Willi Syndrome

Awareness Month!

One Mom’s Love!

May 2013 Issue 2

More inside!

Celebrate Differences is committed to supporting

individuals with disabilities in reaching their fullest potential by providing positive resources and

information to families, communities and health care providers while promoting a

competent level of awareness and understanding.

Mission

PG.

4

Rachel wi th Kirs ten.

We had a five year old daughter and a three year old

son and in 2003 we found out we were pregnant with

our third child. We decided to have an ultrasound at

five months to find out the sex of the baby. To our

surprise we found out we were having twin girls! We

were overwhelmed by the news...not enough money,

our house is too small, caring for four small children.

So the girls were born, and came home the next

day. Everything was perfect, or so

we thought.

One of our twins, Kirsten, was

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Thank You to our 5K Sponsors!!

Thrivent Financial

Celebrate Friends Celebrate Friends is designed to help children better understand what it means and how it feels to be a young person with a disability. This educational program gives students the opportunity to learn what is involved when someone has a disability. The goal of the program is simple: to encourage typically developing children to accept their peers with disabilities as people first, through awareness. Interested in a presentation at your school, contact the center at 630-885-3006 or send us an email to get it scheduled!

Thank you for making this year’s Celebrate Differences Steps Toward A Brighter Future 5K Race, 3K Walk and Kids Dash one of the best ever! All the registrations and fundraising efforts helped us cross the finish line on another great race!

A special thanks to all of our sponsors for helping to raise critical, financial resources to support our Disability Awareness Center and the free programming we offer to children and their families.

Advanced Physicians - Marbles The Brain Store

Massage Envy - Meijer - Chicago Wolves

Oswego Fire Department - Pet Supply Plus

Premier Printing - Richard's Building Supply

Road ID - Road Runner Sports - Voyager Health Technologies

Target - Thrivent Financial - Dan Koukal

Walgreens - Wal-Mart - Chicago White Sox

Zappa Studios - Casa Couture Furniture

Erica's Face Painting - Gonzo The Clown – Jode Becknell

Holiday Inn Express - Hollywood Casino

IDEA Marketing Group - Jerry Bannister - Big Life Community Church

K-Hits 104.3 FM - Dreyer Medical - Firehouse Pizza & Pub

Larry Maynard - Law Elder Law - Ashley Francis Photography

Oswego PD Explorers - Jewel-Osco - Hinckley Springs

Thrivent Financial had a group of volunteers at the 5K. And some of their members even ran the race. Three of the Thrivent members received medals in their age groups! Brent Schalhamer (2nd place); Julie Carrol (1st place); and Barb Pinnow (2nd place). Congratulations! More than 20,000 organizations received Thrivent Choice Dollars® grant funds in 2012 – we’re so happy that Celebrate Differences is now one of those organizations! If you are an eligible member, please choose Celebrate Differences to receive your Thrivent Choice Dollars®. Connect with Chicagoland Thrivent Financial on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/chicagoland.financial.associates.thrivent

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We Appreciate Our Volunteers!

Be sure to like us on Facebook! You can find us at

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Celebrate-Differences/48492458671.

On April 15th, Troop 1430 volunteered at the

center and cleaned all the toys. A huge thank you

to all of our amazing volunteers that help us

throughout the year. We would never be able to

do what we do without you! Happy Volunteer

Week to all of those amazing volunteers out

there!

If you or a group that you are involved with would

like to assist us at the center, please call or email

us. We are always in need of volunteers!

5K Updates!!!!!!

If you missed out on seeing the Race Results,

here is the link:

http://itsracetime.com/Results.aspx?ID=566

Your feedback is important to us! If you ran our

5K, we ask that you please complete our survey

as it does help us in planning our event for next

year and to make improvements. We do take all

the feedback into consideration. Here is the link

to the survey. The link will be available for two

weeks.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/BRIGHTERF

UTURE5K

And the winner is………..

The winners of our 2013 raffle are listed below!

iPad – Gina Riley

iPad Mini - Alex Aneston

Sofa Table - Frank Paoletti

Congrats to all of our winners!

A link to photographs of race day will be

available next week. We will send out the link

once it is available.

Prader-Willi Syndrome Prader-Willi Syndrome is a lifelong disease. At this time, there is no cure. Treatment includes growth hormones to combat short stature, keeping the person active to burn calories, and preventing free access to food. Families who have a child with PWS are constantly aware of their child’s food issues and must plan their day-to-day lives around the child in order to keep the child safe. To learn more visit www.pwsausa.org or www.pwsaillinois.org.

very tired and not eating well. Eleven days later, after many tests and a stay in the NICU, we found

out she had Prader-Willi Syndrome. Prader-Willi Syndrome, or PWS, is a deletion of the fifteenth

chromosome. With it comes low muscle tone, degrees of mental retardation and the biggest thing is

an insatiable appetite. Her brain does not tell her she is full! The doctors used words like quality of

life and unfortunately. But Kirsten is not "an unfortunate". She is a sweet girl that has a smile that

lights up a room and a very caring heart!

Of course there are some emotional occasions and some physical challenges and the begging to

eat more, but there are definitely many happy moments as well. The biggest obstacle has been just

balancing trying to have a somewhat normal life for the other kids, a life that they see their friends

have without special needs, a life that is different from others. The hardest thing is the always

wanting to eat and trying to keep the weight under control. The advice I would give to other parents

raising a child with PWS is just to do your best and just enjoy the happy moments. Don't dwell on

the future and to try to not be too hard on yourself.

PWS is not something our family asked for, but it is something we were given and must make the

best of it. A recent proud moment with Kirsten was watching her on stage in her third

grade musical with her "normal" classmates. She was smiling,

singing and dancing just like them. She even had a part

that required her to recite a line in the microphone.

She was so happy to be part of the group!

Rachel Guinn is the proud mom to four amazing children,

one of which just happens to have PWS!

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!

!

May 2013 !

!Next%Chapter%Book%Club%

A%book%club%for%young%adults%with%disabilities%–%meets%every%other%Thursday%at%Panera%in%Oswego.%

Bounce%Time!For%infants%to%age%4.%Adults%will%enjoy%time%with%the%little%ones%during%our%30%minute%class%of%favorite%songs%and%rhymes,%movement%and%dance,%lap%bounce%time%and%a%short%story.%

Celebrate%Dyslexia!We%have%partnered%with%Everyone%Reading%Illinois%to%bring%you%the%Kendall%County%Awareness%Group%for%Dyslexia.%

Workshops%

We%have%partnered%with%Infinitec%through%a%grant%from%the%ISBE%to%offer%workshops%to%tech%about%technology%and%the%iPad.%

!

!

Sunday% Monday% Tuesday% Wednesday% Thursday% Friday% Saturday%

! ! ! 1! 2! 3! 4!

! ! ! ! Board!Meeting!

7pm!

! Teacher’s!and!

Therapist’s!

Workshop!9<

11am!

!

5! 6! 7! 8! 9! 10! 11!

Cinco!de!Mayo! ! ! Cool!Tools!for!

School!iPad!

training!for!

parents!7pm!

Next!Chapter!

Bok!Club!–!7pm!

at!Panera!

Oswego!

! !

12! 13! 14! 15! 16! 17! 18!

Mother’s!Day! ! ! ! ! ! !

19! 20! 21! 22! 23! 24! 25!

! Bounce!Time!10<

10:30am!

Celebrate!

Dyslexia!7pm!

! Next!Chapter!

Bok!Club!–!7pm!

at!Panera!

Oswego!

! !

26! 27! 28! 29! 30! 31! !

! Memorial!Day! ! ! ! ! !

! ! ! ! ! ! !

! ! ! ! ! ! !

!

www.CelebrateDi!erences.org

All programs take place at the center unless otherwise stated.

Be sure to visit our website at celebratedifferences.org or our

Facebook page to see more details about each event.

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Community Corner! This is the place to see and share events not organized by Celebrate Differences but possibly

relevant to you or someone you know. If you have information to share, about your trainings or

events, please email the details to info@celebratedifferences.org by the 15th of each month. Please

be aware that we have not reviewed or endorsed the suggested events. If you need more

information, please contact the individual or organization organizing the event.

Support ing ch i ld development through INTERVENTION EDUCATION & PURPOSEFUL PLAY

Phone: 630-552-9890 Fax: 630-552-9891 Email: classes@rightstepsforkids.com Address: 1555 Sycamore Rd. Yorkville IL 60560

COMMUNITY EDUCATION COMMUNITY EDUCATION COMMUNITY EDUCATION SERIES SERIES SERIES SPRING 2013SPRING 2013SPRING 2013

Leading Through Life Transitions Tuesday, May 7th, 2013 at 7pm

Please join us to hear about the importance of implementing structured routines around transitioning to big kid beds, potty training, giving up the pacifier and mealtimes! We will learn practical ways to include routines in your everyday activities as a way to promote positive behavior in the home as you and your child move through significant milestones!

Presented by Dana Burke, M.S.Ed., BCBA, Infant Care Specialist

and Co-Director of ABC Mom’s, Inc.

Healthy Eating for Developmental & Behavior Challenges Monday, June 3rd, 2013 at 7pm

"You are what you eat" has become cliche. Let's talk about what that truly means for our children, their behavior, development and challenges; and then talk about how to encourage healthy eating habits in kids of all ages using research-based but also parent-tested methods that produce results. Understand how intestinal damage happens, how that contributes to neurological, immunological and emotional disruption; and how to change the culture of eating in your home that ends the dinner table wars while simultaneously changing eating habits for our children.

Presented by Heather DeGeorge, CHC/AADP, PMP

Health & Wellness Coach

Registration is FREE! Space is limited. Please call or email to reserve a seat.

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! ! ! ! CHICAGOLAND*SPEEDWAY*

! ! ! ! GEICO*400*NASCAR*SPRINT*CUP*SERIES!

Tickets:!!!Adults!$50.00!/!!Kids!$30.00!/!!!Pit!Area!$35.00!

I!would!need!the!money!in!advance!in!order!to!purchase!the!tickets.!

Date:**9@15@13!

Time:!!1:00p.m.!(Race)!

The!gates!will!open!as!early!as!7:00a.m.,!but!in!the!past!I!have!been!to!the!races!up!at!Chicago!Land!Speedway.!!My!advice!is!if!you!want!to!get!close!to!the!speedway!f!or!parking,!I!would!get!there!about!9:00a.m.,!if!you’re!a!diehard!race!fan,!you!can!get!there!as!soon!as!they!open.!!It’s!a!lot!of!fun!to!tailgate,!and!there’s!a!lot!to!see!outside!of!the!speedway!before!race!time.!!They’ll!have!souvenir!trailers,!various!activities!for!adults!and!kids.!!If!you!really!want!to!try!something!exciting,!the!speed!channel!will!have!a!live!broadcast!from!Champions!Park.!

RSVP:!July!12th,!2013!

I!will!also!need!to!know!how!many!people!are!in!your!party.!

Contact*Information:**(815)634@0741!or!(815)416@8394!or!stevejohnson127@att.net!

I!hope!everyone!can!come!out!and!enjoy!the!Chicago!Land!Speedway!!!!!Gentlemen,!start!your!engines!!!!!

!

Tickets:**$10.00*

If*we*get*20*or*more*people,*ticket*prices*drop*to*$8.00.*

I*would*need*the*money*in*advance*in*order*to*purchase*the*tickets.*

Date:*8R18R13*

Game*Time:**2:05p.m.*

RSVP:**July*1st*

I*will*also*need*to*know*how*many*people*are*in*your*party.*

Contact*Information:**(815)634R0741*or*(815)416R8394*or*stevejohnson127@att.net*

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Fundraising Focus

Thanks to Earth Mover Credit Union for their donation

of $195 to Celebrate Differences. Their employees pay

to wear jeans and they donate the funds to charities

who receive the most votes on Facebook. Celebrate

Differences was the chosen April Charity.

Looking for some natural products for your home or for

you? Be sure to checkout Watkins for all of your

needs. Visit our charity website and a percentage of

your purchase goes to Celebrate Differences! Visit

www.WatkinsOnline.com/celebratedifferences and

make your purchase today!

Celebrate Differences 5375 US Rt 34, Suite 4

Oswego, Il 60543

+

Wanted

We are looki

ng for models

for our 201

4

awareness c

alendar as w

ell as models

and

committee members

for our firs

t annual all-

inclusive fa

shion show

fundraiser.

Email us at ce

lebratediffe

rences@yahoo

.com