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The Connecticut Family Support Network is a statewide network of families who have children with disabilities and special health care needs. We are parents interested in helping other parents to find the supports they need to become their child's best advocate. The network partners with the Connecticut Family Support Council, a legislatively established partnership of parents, advocates and state leaders working to improve supports and maximize programs and services for the families we serve.
Donate Now "Help Us to Continue Helping Families."
To make a donation, please contact Jennifer Carroll. Thanks!
[Click here to find the CTFSN Brochure]
~CURRENT NEWS AND EVENTS~
CTFSN Announces A New Program for Parents and Celebrates
the Success of our Parent Faculty!
Parent Mentoring Program
The CT Family Support Network is excited to launch a new program for families! We will be expanding our reach and support to families through our new Parent Mentoring Program. The CTFSN has always assisted parents by providing information and resources, as well as a connection to other parents for social support and networking when a parent makes that request. Often we are asked to connect a parent to another parent who has a child with a similar or related diagnosis or medical condition. We will be formalizing this process by developing a systematic approach to connecting and preparing parents as mentors. The CTFSN is developing a data base of "Mentor" parents, launching a referral system to get more parents connected to a mentor parent and developing and providing a training module for supporting "Mentor" parents with a process for and communication techniques associated with their role. For more information about the CTFSN Parent Mentor Program, please contact Jennifer Carroll at 877-376-2329 .
Parent Faculty Program
The CTFSN is proud of the rapid pace of growth within the Parent Faculty Program. As outreach to families has increased, a new group of parent leaders has begun to emerge. The CTFSN staff identifies these emerging leaders and invites them to join our team in a unique way. The Parent Faculty Program puts more parents of children with disabilities and special healthcare needs at the table (boards, committees, agency advisory councils, etc.) where folks are discussing, developing and planning programs that serve children with special needs - bringing the parent voice to the table. This includes diverse parents from varied rural and urban communities, across cultures, socioeconomic levels and languages. The CTFSN considers Parent Faculty members to be adjunct staff who also assist with training and other outreach activities. Parent Faculty members are paid stipends for their time, travel and childcare. These opportunities provide flexible, meaningful employment that capitalizes on parents' expertise earned in caregiving. These are rare opportunities to develop leadership among parents of children with disabilities, especially in communities where minority or disadvantaged families are often excluded or rarely valued for their parenting experiences.
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CTFSN Director of Programs and Services and Board President present at the University of New England
Tesha Imperati, CTFSN Director of Programs and Services and Karen Zrenda, CTFSN Board of Directors President and Family Resource Program Coordinator at Yale-New Haven Children's Hospital presented at the Tenth Annual Spring Symposium at the University of New England in Portland Maine on April 5th. Karen and Tesha had the opportunity to present to students of Physical Therapy, Nursing, Occupational Therapy, Dental and Social Workers about living with and caring for a person with special health care needs. They focused on daily routines, school, and the transition from medical care to home care.
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The Connecticut Family Support Network Presents:
Summer Camps for Children with Special Needs
The CT Family Support Network will host presentations on Summer Camps for children with special needs. The presentations will offer parents an opportunity to meet with representatives from local and statewide camps, share information with other parents and discuss possible funding resources.
Westbrook: March 14th
Danbury: March 15th
New Haven: March 20th
Wethersfield: March 20th
Hartford: March 23rd
New London: April 4th
Torrington: April 4th
Killingly: April 5th
This is a free event. Registration is required.
Please click here for more information and registration information.
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The Connecticut Family Support Network
One Voice Newsletter
Spring 2012
Enjoy reading about the work of CTFSN Deaf/Hard of Hearing Advocacy Coordinator, Patti Silva and her accomplishments with CT Hands & Voices. There is also a wonderful article about self-advocate Sarah Honigfeld's trip to India to promote global advocacy addressing social issues that affect deaf populations.
In this edition the "Parent's Corner" includes information about upcoming summer camp presentations and helpful resources for locating a summer camp.
Please click here for the Spring 2012 edition and happy Spring!
Click Here to enjoy the Fall 2011 edition of "One Voice"
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The CTFSN wants to hear from you!
We would like to hear about how our programs and services are doing for the families we serve.
Please (click here) to complete a brief seven question survey.
The CTFSN staff values your opinion and appreciates your feedback.
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