A HUGE thank you to everyone who participated in our 5th Annual Strike It Big for Milestones Bowling Extravaganza yesterday at Buckeye Lanes in North Olmsted and Freeway Lanes in Solon.
It was a wonderful turnout at both locations and fun for the whole family with bowling, face painting, balloon making, food & drink, a raffle and appearances by Superheroes to Kids, Heroes United 4 Kids, Nina Jacobs, Slider the Mascot, Swifty the Clown, and Danimal Dan.
We also wanted to extend a tremendous thank you to our incredible sponsors who helped make our event a smashing success! Davis Automotive Group, Hickman & Lowder Co., LPA, Morgan Stanley, Ganley Subaru East, Robert W. Baird & Co., Fairview Park City Schools, The Irvin Family, The Mazel Company, Reminger Co., LPA, Sherwin-Williams, Swagelok, Westlake-Bay Village Rotary Club, and Westlake City School District.
We look forward to seeing you again next year!
Among the hundreds of ways Milestones provides support to families and individuals with ASD, our free Helpdesk is perhaps the best way to start. Our knowledgeable team features over 63 years of combined experience in the fields of Early Childhood & Special Education, Mental Health Counseling, Behavioral Intervention, Social Work and Coaching.
Our Helpdesk team includes Milestones Program Director Beth Thompson, Social Worker Helena Farkas, Teen & Adult Coordinator Haley Dunn and Coaching & Referral Specialist Monica Chukayne.
“The Milestones team’s persistence in gathering data and communicating with the district is inspiring me not to give up on my children’s needs as their skills are improving after these long and painful processes,” says parent Grace Lin-Fadel. “It is worthy to keep going after seeing the benefits for our children. I am lucky to know and learn from Milestones. I thank them for sharing their experience.”
Get to know the hard-working individuals who can help you get connected to schools, camps, tutors, doctors, therapists, support groups and more.
Beth Thompson, MSSA, LSW; Program Director
Whether students are college or career bound, Beth is instrumental in helping teens successfully transition to adulthood. She received her Master’s degree from Case Western Reserve University’s Morton, Jack and Joseph School of Social Sciences in Community Development and has extensive hands-on experience working with transition-aged students with autism. Beth’s favorite part of her job is when she can assist a young person in finding and developing their unique talents.
Helena Farkas, LISW-S; Social Worker
Before coming to Milestones, Helena worked extensively with the special needs population as a social worker at Metro Health Medical Center, where she helped families navigate the medical and community systems. At Milestones, Helena has coached families, individuals and professionals to access the multiple resources that promote education, health and independence. Her favorite quote: “If families are given enough time and information, they will make the right decision.”
Haley Dunn, MA, LPC; Teen & Adult Coordinator
Haley assists individuals crossing the bridge from school into the adult world. She is also has experience providing mental health counseling services to all age groups. She has a deep passion for connecting people to their community to live out their fullest life. The best part of her work is when individuals are able to become an advocate for themselves in order to be as successful as possible in their education, work, community and independent living.
Monica Chukayne, Coaching & Referral Specialist
Monica is dedicated to ensuring the success of those with autism and special needs reach their full potential and helping them to achieve lifelong success from birth to adulthood. As an Educator and Intervention Specialist she has a wide range of experience working directly with individuals with mild to intensive needs. She could not imagine a more rewarding and impactful vocation. Her favorite quote: “Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow.” -Albert Einstein
Our 5th Annual Strike It Big Bowling Extravaganza is just two weeks away!
The event, presented by Davis Automotive Group, will take place Sunday, April 23 from 11 am to 3 pm at Freeway Lanes of Solon and Buckeye Lanes in North Olmsted. In addition to bowling, there will be food, face painting, balloon animals, a raffle and opportunity to learn more about autism.
Proceeds will directly support local families impacted by autism through Milestones’ free Autism Helpdesk, a service that allows families to call professional staff for guidance, local resources and information at each and every stage of their child’s development.
Hear about this fun-filled day from some our families who have attended in the past.
“Our whole family really enjoys the Milestones Strike It fundraiser. My husband and I love that it’s a comfortable and judgement-free event. And our kids have a blast bowling and just running around being silly. It is so nice to be with other families who are on similar journeys. We are really looking forward to this year’s event!” –Leslie Dorsey
“As a School Psychologist, I’ve referred many families to Milestones for resources in our community. Parents have shared immense satisfaction with the information they’ve received over the years. The Milestones office and website provides functional and helpful information for parents, family members, guardians, individuals with ASD, educators, administrators, medical & legal professionals and safety professionals (police & fire departments) that is extremely valuable. I find the yearly conference to be beneficial as well and thoroughly enjoy the myriad of sessions available. I’ve learned SO MUCH over the past 10+ years and enjoy sharing with my colleagues, students and their families!” – Edie Ungar-Shafron
“Milestones is an invaluable resource to members of our local ASD community who are looking for support, education and coaching. Strike it Big is a fun, family-friendly bowling event for everyone and the money raised allows Milestones to continue its mission. Everyone in attendance enjoys this day – from very young children to older adults. It feels good knowing that we are making an impact in the lives of children and adults in the autism community.” –Allison McMeechan, Strike It Big Event Chair
“Our family has been so inspired and humbled to be a part of fundraising for Milestones. The Strike It Big Event is a wonderful opportunity to have fun, meet wonderful people, and share stories, while helping such a great cause. We would encourage anyone to participate in this family friendly and enjoyable event.” -Kristen, Shawn, Noah and Emma West
In honor of World Autism Awareness Day, we are thrilled to highlight how an organization half way around the world is raising international acceptance and support of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).
Tryphinah Mvubu, Founding Director of Autism Swaziland, shares firsthand experience as a mother of child with autism, her challenges and triumphs, and how her son, Nick, 13, is the champion behind their organization, “Nick’s great improvement has been a source of inspiration to our family, his therapists and many – thus, he became the hero behind Autism Swaziland.”
Tell us how you have been personally touched by autism.
My journey with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) started in 2007, when my boy, Nick, started early childhood education at the age of 4. At this stage, he could not formulate his own speech. He was hyperactive, had insomnia and was only sleeping 15 to 30 minutes at most since he was born. He exhibited many other characteristics of ASD some of which were seen from birth but I did not know at the time what it was.
Nick’s preschool teachers had sent many complaints and eventually instructed me to take him for assessment. They told me he is a “special child” but I did not know what that meant. Upon the first assessment, he was with diagnosed ADHD. They too repeated the term, “special child.” I then took him to the Psychiatric Hospital and he was put on Ritalin, which did not make any difference. It was after the Ritalin had failed that I heard the word “Autism” for the first time. An autism expert who had worked with children with ASD in the US diagnosed Nick with Asperger’s Syndrome. Nick started therapy with an Occupational Therapist and Language and Speech Therapist at Mbabane Government hospital.
Since Nick’s diagnosis, can you share with us the ups and downs? Success stories?
We did not miss his appointments with the therapists. We saw a huge difference. He could now see me in a picture and also recognize me in person, the same with all the other family members, but there were times when you could not be sure if he knew you. Nick started formulating his own speech when he was 9 years old and his coordination improved drastically. His therapists attributed this development to the drums he practiced with a passion from the age of two. He used kitchen utensils such as cake tins, bottles, pots and cutlery, and at times stones. Today he is one of the best in playing drums. He is invited to play even for weddings. He also taught other boys who are now playing in their churches. Nick has been able to make many friends and heroes through his skill for playing drums.
In terms of Nick’s education, his learning was not easy since we had to negotiate and educate each teacher about his condition. But he passed well, ranging from 75% up almost in all subjects. With computer and French he could score up to 100% at times.
Nick is now able to sit still and to sleep for many hours. When he was younger he did not want to be touched nor cuddled. But today he is very affectionate. He can now eat a variety of foods, though he still very choosey. He is also passionate about saving his own money to buy his own Samsung tablet. He likes gadgets and the Internet, as they help him see new drum players. He learns new styles from them which he immediately tries out in church. He plays soccer. He can wash his own clothes and dress himself properly.
Sometimes we deliberately miss his routine just to see his reaction – he can now cope. When his sister is away at university, all he needs to know is when she is leaving home and the month of her return. Around that time, he will begin asking about her. Generally, Nick can now cope with many changes. We have really come a long way with him.
What does the next chapter in Nick’s development look like?
Nick is now classified among highly functional individuals with ASD, he has good speech both in his first and second language. He still struggles though with abstract concepts, like words with double meaning, humor, idioms and social cues. He still does not know he has a condition since he does not understand it.
Nick is a teenager now and we, as a family, are struggling with addressing sexual reproductive health issues due to his concrete thinking and inability to understand some words.
Tell us about the level of autism awareness in Swaziland.
Living in a country where ASD is not known, Nick was often misunderstood as a spoiled brat. Some parents would even try to discipline him in my presence since I was considered failing to be a good parent. Being a church person, it was never easy to be in church with him. For many years, we would spend most of the time outside until he was allowed to sit on the drums.
Swaziland is still at an initial awareness stage in as far as issues of autism are concerned. Many people do not know nor understand autism and it is highly stigmatized. This includes the leadership, legislature, many in the health sector and the community at large, making it difficult for children and persons with ASD to access basic services. Thus some parents opt to hide their children from ridicule and they refuse to open up about this challenge.
There are three government hospitals that give therapeutic services to individuals with ASD namely, the Psychiatric Centre, Mbabane government and Mankayane hospital here in Swaziland. But these too, have a limitation in adequately providing therapeutic services to individuals with ASD. Yet autism is on the rise here. There are private service providers though few. They are expensive for the masses, many of which are counted among the almost 70 percent of the country’s population that lives below the poverty line.
The plight of individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders in Swaziland and Africa cannot be over emphasized, the list is endless.
With firsthand experience, you saw a need for Autism Swaziland. What kind of support and services does your organization offer?
I founded Autism Swaziland in 2013 as Litsemba Lemliba Support Centre (loosely translated as, “Hope for the Children – Our Future Generation”). The name then changed two years later to “Autism Swaziland” for the understanding of the international community. However, Autism Swaziland is also known as Litsemba Lemliba Support Centre for stigma reduction purposes – as autism is still highly stigmatized.
Autism Swaziland focuses on children and families affected by Autism Spectrum Disorders by giving support, rehabilitation, awareness, advocacy, protection as well as psychosocial support to their families. Thus bringing hope to children with ASD and their families.
How important is international awareness and acceptance of autism?
International awareness of autism is important in the sense that it helps Swaziland, though still at an awareness stage, to align with what the world is doing. For example, the theme for this year’s World Autism Awareness Day is, “Autonomy and Self Determination.” There is no autonomy without awareness, as it says, “I can make informed decisions about my life.”
International awareness will help us educate parents in what they need to know about ASD so that they can make informed decisions for their children. This will help them positively change the environment of the child. The parent’s knowledge will reduce stress for the family, thus reducing stressors for the individual with ASD. In our experience working with parents, many children drastically improve once the family knows and accepts the condition.
Tell us about your relationship with Milestones Autism Resources. How is Milestones helping you and your organization?
Milestones has helped my organization in so many ways – with invaluable tool kits, resource discs, and a brochure detailing how teachers and pupils can understand children with ASD at school and in class. These tool kits have gone a long way in helping our Program Enhancers, teachers and parents. There has been a positive impact on the children we frequently support.
Haley Dunn on the Milestones team is our Contact and Resources person and we are forever grateful to her, Karen J. Smith, our Autism Swaziland US contact, and the entire Milestones family. I can’t wait for the Conference and to meet all these great people in person!
What do you hope to gain from attending the Conference in June?
Milestones, through Karen Smith, has invited me to attend the 15th Annual Conference and I look forward to attending! As the Founding Director of Autism Swaziland, I hope to broaden my understanding of ASD issues from the enlightened input of the practitioners that will attend the conference.
I look forward to meeting like-minded professionals as myself and I am hoping to gain knowledge from others at the conference, through the workshops and shared experiences. I also hope to enlighten others about Autism Swaziland/Africa.
As a mother of a child with ASD, now approaching the teenage stage, I am eager to learn more approaches to issues of Sexual Reproductive Health (SRH) which is a major challenge among children with ASD and disability in general. With HIV/AIDS infection rate on the increase in Africa, especially among girls with ASD, I am also anxious to know how my country can develop an SRH program that will effectively address such issues.
My hope is to return to my country with new approaches to help better the lives of many people with ASD. I am also hoping that my country can be a learning Centre for many countries in Africa in the near future.
