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Our mission

 is to build

 communities of

 support, acceptance,

 and opportunity for

 children, adults,

 and families living  with developmental

 disabilities

    Issue 48                                                                                                        November 2008  

                     (Click on title below to go directly to article.) 

            

 

Calendar of Events

  
 

    
Saturday, November 15, 9 a.m. – 12 noon: Special Needs Gift & Toy Fair, Metro East GLRS, 2415-C North Druid Hills, Road, NE, Atlanta. See "Make toys work..." article for details.
     
Friday, November 21 through Saturday, December 20: Sage Toy Drive; Buckhead, Midtown, and Forsyth County locations! http://www.sageclothing.com. 
     
Monday, December 1, 6 p.m. – 8 p.m.: Holiday Shopping to Benefit AADD at Ten Thousand Villages, 1056 St. Charles Ave., NE, Virginia Highlands neighborhood, Atlanta. AADD will receive 10% of sales this evening at the nonprofit international gift store that supports third world artisans. Give fairly traded gifts this season: toys, jewelry, baskets, ornaments, home décor, folk art, and more.
     
Saturday, December 6, 7 p.m. – 10 p.m.: Holiday Dinner/Dance, Peachtree Presbyterian Church, 3424 Roswell Road, NW, Atlanta. Ages 14 & up; semi-formal attire; $10 donation requested. See Dinner/Dance article below.
     
Sunday, December 7, 5:30 p.m. – 9 p.m.: For the Kid in All of Us invites you to a holiday party that gathers toys and contributions that are then distributed to beneficiary organizations (AADD is one) for the children they support. Your admission?  -- one unwrapped new toy or gift card of $15 or greater value.  For more information, www.forthekid.org. To learn more about the benefits for AADD, see the story below about the teen trip to Tennessee.
    
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1. AADD Legacy Breakfast defies economy

  
 


     
AADD Legacy Co-Chairs Whitney and Peter Moister welcome more than 250 guests to Legacy 2008, the organization’s annual awareness-building and fundraising event. For more photos, plus event highlights, follow this link.
     

 

    
AADD once more defied the odds. When many nonprofits were canceling fundraising events, AADD attracted more than 250 business and community leaders to its 6th Annual Legacy Breakfast. Saying they believe strongly in AADD’s work, Whitney and Peter Moister, event Co-Chairs, want current donors to know they are grateful for their support and potential donors to know that difficult times in our economy are especially hard for families living with developmental disabilities.  As state funding and other resources shrink, Whitney and Peter continue to remind people that they can still give, and urge them to give as much as they can.
    
“We are grateful that Co-Chairs Peter and Whitney Moister and Honorary Chairs Barbara and Vince Dooley forged ahead when many organizations were canceling their events,” said Mary Yoder, AADD Executive Director. “To date, we have raised $223,521 in gifts and pledges from the event. We appreciate the generosity of so many people. But the needs are great,” she said.
    
Yoder echoed the Moisters' comments about the economy, saying, “Individual and corporate donations are now more important than ever. It is time for people to remember fellow Georgians living with developmental disabilities – especially people who want to work and need our assistance to find jobs, as well as people who face challenges of a justice system that isn’t yet informed about their unique needs.”
    
You can continue to make pledges and donations by sending a check to AADD, 1440 Dutch Valley Place, Suite 200, Atlanta, GA 30324-5371 or call Susan at 404-881-9777, ext 232 to make donation arrangements.
  
Click here to make a secure online donation.
   
See and hear more of the event. See the Whitefield Academy Marching Band and vocalist Joy Summerville open the event with a rousing rendition of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" here. See why five-year old singer Bradley Blalock received a standing ovation here; find out why Honorary Host Barbara Dooley’s grandson is concerned for her soul here.
    
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    2. AADD helps build Aging and Disability Coalitions for Georgia

  
 
    
Stephanie Shapiro uses a mirror to conduct a training on the similarities faced by persons who are aging and persons with developmental disabilities.
     		 
 

 
“Be prepared to learn and laugh!” may not be an evaluation comment you’d expect following a training session on aging and disabilities. But participants came with open minds and were, as one participant wrote, “receptive to the fact that times are changing and it’s our responsibility to be open to ideas that help us to be more inclusive of all people.”
      
During the summer and fall sessions, highlighting issues of concern to aging caregivers who have adult children living with developmental disabilities, more than 350 Georgians in ten different cities across the state worked to initiate and build regional Aging and Disabilities Coalitions. AADD’s Partners in Policymaking Alumni program teamed with the Developmental Disabilities Council of DeKalb County and the Aging and Developmental Disabilities Coalition to offer the training in Albany, Athens, Augusta, Brunswick, Columbus, Macon, McRae, Newnan, Rome, and Waycross.
     
Participants said they gained a better understanding of the history of supports and current best practices. They also received sensitivity training on disability issues. The curriculum included “Language, Values, and History for People With Disabilities,” and information specific to Georgia. Local news organizations in several of the cities covered the training.
    
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 3. AADD's 20th annual Holiday Dinner/Dance

  
 
Attendees dancing at AADD's 2007 Holiday Dinner/Dance.		  
    
On Saturday, December 6,  from 7 – 10 p.m., The Junior League of Atlanta joins with AADD to host the 20th Annual Holiday Dinner/Dance, a highlight of the holiday season for adults living with developmental disabilities. “It’s hard to believe this dance has grown from being an event hosted by parents for some of their children to the huge event it is now,” said Dan Evatt, AADD’s recreation manager. “Some of the original group of parents will be at the dance helping to serve for the twentieth year in a row. It has made such an incredible difference to have had the Junior League involved for so many years, and we are all grateful for that support,” he added.

This year’s sit-down, semi-formal dinner and dance will be held at Peachtree Presbyterian Church at 3424 Roswell Road in Buckhead. More than 70 volunteers will serve dinner to guests who enjoy this special opportunity to dress up and celebrate the season with friends.  Make a reservation by calling 404-881-9777, ext 200. Questions? Call Dan Evatt at 404-881-9777, ext. 216.
   
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 4. Say "Yes" to holiday joy: Adopt-A-Family for the holidays.  
   

   
Right now AADD is seeking open-hearted individuals, businesses, and communities of faith to adopt one or more of the 170 families in Atlanta who receive our services.
     
Persons with developmental disabilities and their families often live at or below the poverty level.  Once they have stretched their income to cover the basics – shelter, water, heat, and light – often they have little left for food and practically nothing left for new clothes and toys for their children.  It is hard to be left out of holiday cheer.  You can make sure everyone is included.
    
It’s easy to say “Yes!” and adopt a family for the holidays: Call AADD’s Azalene James at 404-881-9777, ext 214  to discuss details, or e-mail Azalene@aadd.org.   
    
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 5. Sage Fashion Wisdom kicks off 5th annual toy drive benefiting AADD  
 

   
For the fifth year, Sage Fashion Wisdom, a trendy clothing store with loyal customers, will ask their clients to contribute toys that can be distributed to AADD families. Collections in previous years have yielded thousands of dollars in toys and helped support AADD’s Adopt-A-Family program to make the holidays more cheerful for families in need. Customers donating a new toy worth over $10 will receive a 25% discount on one item they purchase.
     
“We appreciate that Sage does this,” said Mary Yoder, AADD Executive Director. “It’s always great for our families to receive brand new toys. We also appreciate that Sage is a very high-profile store, with three locations in high-traffic areas. Sage sets up a display about AADD during the prime shopping season that really helps to get the word out about what AADD does. We are grateful both for the toys and the opportunity to be introduced to shoppers who may not know about us,” she added.
    
Collections will begin Friday, November 21 at Sage stores located in Buckhead, Midtown, and Forsyth County.  For specific store locations or to learn more about Sage, please visit their website.
     
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Shannon Kitchens, of Sage Fashion Wisdom, holding two toys collected during their toy drive benefiting AADD.		  
 6. Make toys work for your child this holiday season  
 

   
AADD joins Metro East Center for the Georgia Learning Resources System (GLRS) and the DeKalb Developmental Disabilities Council in sponsoring a Special Needs Gift & Toy Fair, Saturday, November 15, 2008, 9 a.m. to 12 noon, at the Metro East GLRS, 2415-C North Druid Hills, Road, NE, Atlanta.
     
Parents are invited to bring their children with disabilities (in order to make the day memorable, parents are asked to bring only their child with special needs). Participants will have hands-on access to toys, and demonstrations for parents will show how to use toys to enhance a child’s social and language skills. They will also show how to adapt toys to use switches. There will be door prizes, and information to order toys will be available. For more information, please call 678-676-2417.
     
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 7. For the Kid in All of Us funds fun activities for AADD children and teens  
       
Just as the sun was coming up on a late summer morning, 13 teens and three chaperones piled into the van idling in the parking lot, gassed up and ready to go.  Their destination –Ruby Falls at Lookout Mountain in Tennessee – the 145-foot underground waterfall that has been “200 million years in the making.” They returned late that same day, dog-tired from hiking, sleepy but smiling, and with images of blue mountains and glowing caves etched into their memory 		 
 

   
banks. For most of the youth, this day-trip organized by the Atlanta Alliance on Developmental Disabilities (AADD) was the only vacation in their summer plans.
    
“This trip gave the teenagers we work with a chance to get out of the city, explore, and become one with nature,” Kai Stewart, AADD Director of Clinical and Social Services, said. “It was truly AWE-some. The lights on the cave walls fascinated us as we hiked further and further down to the underground falls.”
     
Thanks to funds contributed by For the Kid in All of Us, the 120-mile trip to Ruby Falls and Lookout Mountain was only one of several activities AADD was able to plan for the teens. Ten children attended day camps all summer long, while four others left the inner city for week-long sessions at Camp Wesley. The Teen Group also spent a day at Six Flags and had an afternoon at the movies with “The Incredible Hulk.” 
   
“Having a fun place to spend the summer, like the day camps and Camp Wesley, is so essential for these children.  This way learning doesn’t stop in June and their parents don’t need to worry about their safety,” Cindy Wyss, AADD Outreach Specialist Manager, said. “This special time – and, of course, the gifts they look forward to all year and receive during the holidays – wouldn’t  be possible without support from For the Kid in All of Us. We are so thankful for their generosity!” she added.
    
For more information on For the Kid in All of Us and the holiday party they are throwing that will benefit AADD, please visit their website.
    
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 8. Activity Connection  
 

   
For information on recreation or education events, click here to visit the “Recreation” section of our AADD Web site.
   
Pictured: AADD Special Olympic swim team coach Casey Drake (center), with athletes Stacy Anderson (right) and Clay Conrad (left).

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Atlanta Alliance on Developmental Disabilities - (AADD)

1440 Dutch Valley Place - Suite 200   Atlanta, GA   30324-5371

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