HAPPY NEW YEARS!!!!

We are so excited today because we are launching Friends of SKI!!!

Friends of SKI is a new program of Special Kids, Inc designed to fortify the support base of SKI. Your membership will guarantee your “In the Know” place on our mailing list, e-blasts, and special engagements list. We will keep you updated on how SKI is doing in the community, financially, and with services we provide. You will be privileged to volunteer/community service opportunities, updates from the Dept of Ed’s Office of Special Education Program (OSEP) and buzzes of information from other parent centers around the country.  You will also receive VIP invitations to all SKI events.  Friends of SKI are valuable supporters of Special Kids, Inc. Your membership confirms that you believe in our mission to empower parents/families of all children with disabilities. Additionally, your membership with Friends of SKI gives us the support we need to seek funding opportunities to further our work. 

We promise, we will not flood your mail or email with junk mail, sell, or give your information to anyone as your membership status will be kept private. With your permission, we will only list your first name and your city and state as a Friends of SKI member on our website and in newsletters.

The 1ST 100 members will be a CHARTER MEMBER. Do it today, send us a letter stating your belief and support of our mission. Please include your mailing address, email address, and a onetime membership fee of just $25.

Become a Friends of SKI member today! Mail membership information to P.O. Box 266958 Houston TX 77207-6958.

Thanks in advance for your support Special Kids, Incorporated.

Rose Ferguson, Director

Helen Davis, Co-Director

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from. Special Kids, Inc.
Many thanks to all of our donors, volunteers, and supporters. Without you we could not do what we do to serve families of children with disabilities.
God bless you all now and throughout the New Year!!

Join Pete Wright, Esq., in Mansfield, OH on May 4, Cincinnati, OH on May 7, Atlanta, GA on May 12 and Arlington, VA on May 19. Wayne Steedman, Esq., will be presenting in Roanoke, VA. on May 20.

Check out the rest of our spring and summer conference schedule.

Special Kids, Incorporated 21 Annual Winter Forum event was a huge success. Over 150 Parents and children from all over the City of Houston were present.  SKI’s Co-Director, Helen Davis, provided 30 minutes of training on Bullying Prevention. The parents and children interacted by sharing their experiences and giving feedback. We had a special performance by Dionysus Theatre Troupe on “Bullying” that the crowd really loved.  Santa visited with gifts for the children and then gave candy and fruit to everyone. A special thanks to our sponsors, The Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities (MOPD)www.houstontx.gov/disabilities, SKI board members, the staff at Holiday Inn Reliant and most important the families we serve for making the event most enjoyable. We hope to continue providing this event for many years to come. christmas-party-2011

Special Kids, Incorporated has partnered with the FAST Project to provide family support leadership training to families of children with disabilities in Houston and the surrounding areas. A primary emphasis will be reaching underserved families from all geographic regions.

You are invited to be in a national research study of supports for families of youth with disabilities. You were selected as a possible participant because you are a parent or primary caregiver of a young person with disabilities between 12 and 22 years old. Please read this form and ask any questions you have before agreeing to be in the study.

The Family Advocacy and Support Training (FAST) Project is funded by the Administration on Development Disabilities (ADD) as a Project of National Significance (Grant number 90DN0269). FAST is a project of PACER Center in Minnesota in collaboration with Parent Centers throughout the United States and Territories and with the help of the University of Minnesota.

This survey is being conducted by: Sheryl A. Larson, Ph.D., and K. Charlie Lakin, Ph.D., University of Minnesota, Research and Training Center on Community Living. The FAST Project is coordinated by Shauna McDonald and Paula Goldberg, Executive Director, PACER Center.

If you would like to be a part of this iniative please visit: www.fastfamilysupport.org to find out more about what SKI is doing and to complete a survey. In doing so you will help to provide effective services for  thousands of children/individuals with disabilities no only in the Houston Area but in the United States. Also, be on the look out for upcoming training in late August or early September.

To obtain more information about the Administration on Developmental Disabilities (ADD) visit www.acf.hhs.gov