Tickets are now
available for Down Syndrome Awareness Day at the Boston Bruins on Saturday,
February 6, 2010 at the TD Garden for $65 each.The
Bruins will face off against the Vancouver Canucks at 1:00p.m. We are excited for game day which will include
a 50/50 raffle, a public service announcement on the jumbotron, self-advocates
greeting fans as they enter the arena and much more! To purchase tickets for the game, please go to
http://mdsc.kintera.org/BruinsCanucks
.If you have any questions, please
contact us at
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.
The MDSC 26th Annual Conference, Taking Chances will be held on Saturday,March 27, 2010 at the DCU Center in
Worcester, MA from 8:00am to 4:00pm. (Click here to register.)
The conference will once again include a track for
parents, educators, medical professionals, for brothers and sisters, and for
young adults.
Expert speakers and topics include:
So You Have A Grandchild With Down Syndrome. Let's Talk. - Allen
Crocker, M.D. & Beverly Beckham, Boston Globe columnist
Taking a Chance on an
"Ordinary Life:" Full Inclusion for All Children with Down Syndrome -
Cheryl Jorgensen, Ph.D.
Obstructive Sleep Apnea in Children with Down
Syndrome and its Impact on Behavior, Cognition and Development - Dennis
Rosen, M.D.
Engaging Literacy Instruction that Makes
Sense to Kids with Down Syndrome - Karen A. Erickson, Ph.D., and David A.
Koppenhaver, Ph.D.
New Prenatal Tests for Down Syndrome: Local
Updates, National Strategies, and What This All Means for Your Family -Brian
Skotko, M.D., M.P.P., & Sarah Cullen
Strategies for Teaching and
Supporting Healthy Sexuality-Terri Couwenhoven, M.S.
Adults with Down Syndrome: Preparing Now for
a Healthy Future - Jose Florez, M.D., Ph.D.
Understanding and Applying Sensory
Integration Principles to Individuals with Down Syndrome- Janet Wright, M.S., OTR/L
At our 26th Annual
Conference in Worcester, MA on March 27th, 2010, MDSC members will have an opportunity to vote on new persons
to the MDSC Board of Directors. At this time, we are seeking
nominations for committed individuals who would be willing to serve a 3-year
term. The commitment of MDSC Board Members has been the catalyst to the
legacy of the MDSC's 26 years. The Board members'
role is to provide overall governance for the organization and to focus on
development of policies, fundraising, financial oversight, and strategic
planning.
While all nominations are welcomed,
the MDSC is particularly looking for nominees who meet one or more of the
following desired characteristics:
Person with a significant finance background
and/or a certified public accountant (CPA)
Person with significant investment and/or
banking background
Person with a fundraising and development
background with current or prior experience serving as a Corporate Giving,
Foundation or Trust Officer
Person with executive leadership and business
skills
Person with experience as an Educator in a
leadership role in administration, regular or special education or
post-secondary education and training
Note: persons without
a direct connection with Down syndrome and with a strong interest in community
involvement will be recruited and strongly considered in order to provide the
Board with new perspectives and connections. The MDSC also welcomes
applicants from all diverse backgrounds.
Over 200 hundred educators, representing 75
school districts, from across the commonwealth attended the MDSC 6th
Annual Educator's Forum Working Together
- Developing Best Practices for Including Students with Down Syndrome in
General Education on November 12, at Holy Cross College in Worcester.
Maureen Gallagher, Executive Director, introduced
the newly formed MDSC Education Task Force. The task force is a volunteer team
of educators and parents who are dedicated to offering quality information and on-going support to
Massachusetts educators and their students with Down syndrome. The group meets
monthly and is focusing on two projects: an Educator's Manual, and the Teacher
Partnership Network. The Teacher Partnership Network will be a
state-wide group of qualified educators willing to share their knowledge and
experience with another educator who has a student with Down syndrome in their
class for the first time.
The Massachusetts Down Syndrome
Congress (MDSC) achieved record-breaking success and attendance at the annual Buddy
Walk ® this fall.
Held Sunday, October 11, 2009 in
Wakefield, the 13th Annual MDSC Buddy Walk raised more than $230,000
to support MDSC's critical programs, education, and legislative advocacy efforts
for individuals with Down syndrome and their families. Major programs supported
include Parent's First Call, connecting veteran parents of
children with Down syndrome with parents of babies newly diagnosed with Down
syndrome while in utero or at birth; and AIM (Advocates in Motion) which fosters
social relationships among young people with Down syndrome and their peers ages
13-22 through inclusive and interactive events, fitness, community service
participation, job and career skill building, the arts, and sports. A portion
of the proceeds from the Buddy Walk also supports the important work of the
National Down Syndrome Society.
Many
of us like to swim, especially on a warm summer day at the beach, in an outdoor
pool, or in a beautiful lake.Some people
swim for fun and recreation, others swim for exercise, and there are others who
swim for competition or sports. This year, to celebrate National Down Syndrome
Awareness Month on October 8, 2009, Karen Gaffney attempted an eight mile swim in
Boston Harbor to promote the acceptance and inclusion of all people with Down
syndrome.
An
accomplished swimmer, Karen Gaffney is the first person with Down syndrome to
complete a relay swim across the English Channel.Now 31 years of age, Karen has challenged
herself with a string of ‘firsts,' completing seven swims across San Francisco
Bay - including the popular "Escape from Alcatraz" relay triathlon. In
September 2007, she successfully navigated a nine-mile swim across Lake Tahoe
and became the focus of a DVD documentary, Crossing Tahoe: A Swimmer's Dream.
Boston
College Basketball Star and American Idol finalist Ayla
Brown will show her support for the Massachusetts Down Syndrome Congress, its members, and all people with Down syndrome by performing at the
MDSC 13th Annual Buddy Walk.
Best known for both her musical talent as a
former American Idol ‘Sweet 16' finalist turned professional singer as well as
her superior athletic pursuits and starring member of the Boston College Lady Eagles,
Brown has used her celebrity status to support a variety of local non-profit
organizations within which she believes. This year, she is lending her amazing
voice and presence to the MDSC and will be performing for the more than 2,000
expected attendees at the Buddy Walk which will be held on October 11, 2009 at
Lake Quannapowitt in Wakefield. Ms. Brown is expected to perform at 2:45 p.m. near the bandstand of Lake
Quannapowitt's main park, and will also be signing autographs for
fans.
The
MDSC Legislative Task force is pleased to inform you that the MDSC's priority
bill, H. 1780, An Act to require national background checks, was voted
favorably out of the Joint Committee on the Judiciary at the end of October and
has been referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means. We are now one step
closer in the process of helping this important piece of legislation become
law.
This
past July, MDSC Executive Director Maureen Gallagher, and MDSC member Chuck
Maranian, provided key testimony in favor of H. 1780 in front of the Joint
Committee on the Judiciary. Maureen and Chuck were joined by Joshua Komyerov,
Director of Government Affairs for the Arc of Massachusetts, Ralph Calderaro,
General Counsel for the Disabled Persons Protection Commission, Charlie Pina, a
self-advocate from Haverhill, and MDSC Honorary Board Member, Representative
Tom Sannicandro (Ashland). Please click here for a link to MDSC's testimony.
Last year the Massachusetts Down Syndrome Congress (MDSC) was
selected by the B.A.A. as one of 24 charities to participate in the Boston Marathon, entering 15 runners who raised over $66,000!
The 114th
running of the Boston Marathon will take place on April 19, 2010. With
the Boston Marathon being the only qualifying Marathon in the world,
one of the only non-qualifying ways to enter the race is through the
Official Boston Marathon Charity Program.
The
Massachusetts Down Syndrome Congress (MDSC) was chosen to receive
entries that will help raise funds to support the critical work of the
organization. MDSC is now accepting applications from interested
runners.The
entries do not require a qualifying time but do require that runners
acknowledge that they can complete a marathon within 6 hours and will
abide by all other B.A.A. rules and regulations. Applicants must also
agree to raise a minimum of $3,250 for the MDSC. (Click here to make a general donation in support of the team or to support an individual runner!)
If
you are a qualifying or non-qualifying runner interested in applying to
be a member of the MDSC Marathon Team please click here for an application. Contact the MDSC at
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with any questions regarding the application process. Once
a completed application is received there will be a phone interview
with a member of the MDSC staff/board. Once the team has been finalized the selected runners will start training and raising funds for a great cause!
As 20 members of the
Massachusetts Down Syndrome Congress prepared to run the 2009 Cigna Falmouth
Road Race this past August, the news that one of our runners would receive an
award from the Cigna Falmouth Road Race Committee made this an especially
meaningful race for the team.
Carey Daly, 20 years of age of Centerville,
was named recipient of the 2009 MichaelDenmark Award which is presented
each year at the CIGNA Falmouth Road Race to a single runner in recognition of
significant achievement in the face of extraordinary personal challenges - similar
to those that characterized the life of former Falmouth resident, Michael
Denmark. The Denmark Award was established in 1992 in honor of Denmark, a young
man who died at the age of 24, after a lifetime of battling cystic fibrosis. An
avid runner, Denmark competed on his high school and college cross country
teams and in the Falmouth Road Race.
“I enjoyed coming to AIM because I like meeting new people and making new friends. In the past I had a problem interacting with other people, so AIM was a good way to make friends.” -- AIM Program Participant
The MDSC is pleased to announce that registration for the 2009-2010 AIM Program is now open!
Advocates in Motion (AIM) seeks to provide fun, inclusive, interactive events each month for young people withDown syndrome (ages 13-22).
AIM’s primary goal is to fostersocial relationships amongst program participants while simultaneously providing exposure to some of the following: fitness/healthy lifestyles, community service experiences, job and career skill building, the arts, sports, etc. The hope is that through these shared experiences, participants willcreate and build friendships.
We hope that you’ll join us for our second year, which promises to be even more fun than our first!