Welcome to valleyautism.org. We’re here to share resources with families and professionals who care for those affected by Autism Spectrum Disorder in the Shenandoah Valley.
Autism on the Seas 2014
Here’s an opportunity for families with children (of any age) with autism and other developmental disabilities. This is a family vacation with included respite and support. From the flier:
Please join Autism on the Seas and Mary Baldwin College for an adventure at sea aboard Royal Caribbean’s Freedom of the Seas, departing from Port Canaveral, Florida on May 4, 2014 (returning on May 11), and stopping in:
- Coco Cay, Bahamas (Royal Caribbean’s Private Island)
- Charlotte-Amalie, St. Thomas
- Philipsburg, St. Maarten
The 5K was a *SUCCESS* !
Thanks to everyone who participated in Saturday’s 5K.
To view the race results please visit: http://www.runhigh.com/2013RESULTS/R040613AA.html
Pictures will be posted on our Facebook page. See you next year!!
Lunch Bunch Networking & Sharing Updates – Wed., April 10, 2013 – 11:30 am – 1:00 pm
Lunch Bunch Networking and Sharing Updates
This month we will be meeting to share service and program updates and network as we look towards the future of lunch bunch. Shenandoah Valley Autism Partnership (SVAP) hosts our Lunch Bunch on the second Wednesday of each month. The Lunch Bunch is an informal “brown bag” support group meeting to network with other families and professionals who support persons on the Autism Spectrum. We plan to offer networking opportunities, as well as presentations. Please bring your lunch and share your joys, dreams and challenges with others.
For more information, contact Karen McCormick 540-705-5126 or Sally Chappel 540-568-8095 or e-mail svap@valleyautism.org
~Lunch bunch will be cancelled if Harrisonburg City Schools are closed due to inclement weather~
Where: Lucy Simms Center-Meeting Room 4, 620 Simms Ave. Harrisonburg, Virginia 22802
SVAP Responds to Sandy Hook Tragedy
The senseless shooting massacre that took the lives of dozens of innocent victims – most of them children – at Sandy Hook Elementary School of Newtown, Connecticut was a horrific and unprecedented tragedy. The Shenandoah Valley Autism Partnership mourns the deaths of all innocent victims of this awful crime and offers its deepest condolences to their families. Additionally, we are deeply disturbed by the association of the perpetrator of this awful crime by various media outlets to a vulnerable community – the autism community – with rumors that he was on the autism spectrum. Regardless of whether or not the shooter truly is on the autism spectrum, we wish to make it clear that autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are in no way associated with criminal violence. More often than not, people with ASDs are the victims of such violence, not the people committing them.
We fight every day to combat persistent misinformation about autism, particularly about its causes and natural history, as well as the denial of its causes. Today, we are fighting some of the most vile stigmas that can befall people with autism and disability in general, and we ask other organizations- as well as other media outlets in general to take a strong and public stand against such bigotry. The best way to honor the victims of this atrocity is for us as a society to work towards building a safer, healthier environment for all people – both those with and without ASDs – that is free of stigma and free of fear.
Some useful links:
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/my-life-aspergers/201212/asperger-s-autism-and-mass-murder
http://autisticadvocacy.org/2012/12/asan-statement-on-media-reports-regarding-newtown-ct-shooting/
Here are some resources to help families with children on the spectrum deal with the tragedy.
- The first of those pages is for those that have a child who is on the spectrum.
- The second offers help for friends and siblings.
- And the last offers advice for schools.
SVAP autism scholarship program
SVAP is pleased to continue our autism spectrum disorders scholarship program. Because of the generous community support and our annual “Valley 5K Walk/Run for Autism” fundraiser, we continue to be able to offer monetary scholarships on a limited basis for individuals on the Autism Spectrum, as well as those who support and care for persons on the spectrum. These funds may be used towards services such as respite, therapies, safety, sensory equipment, and personal/professional development. Scholarships are limited to persons residing in the following counties/cities in the Shenandoah Valley: Counties of Augusta, Bath, Frederick, Highland, Page, Rockbridge, Rockingham, Shenandoah, Warren, and the Cities of Buena Vista, Harrisonburg, Lexington, Staunton, and Waynesboro. More information and an application are available for download (see above link).
SVAP FUNDRAISER – Sing SOS
SingSOS/Songs of the Spectrum is an autism awareness project built around an album of original songs about autism featuring performances by artists like Jackson Browne, Dar Williams, Marshall Crenshaw and others. The songs convey what’s so hard to convey in words alone: the experience of a family facing this baffling disorder, its unexpected joys as well as heartbreaks. The lyrics were mostly written by the father of a boy with autism, and the art for the CD and the web site was made by artists on the spectrum. All proceeds go to autism service providers such as SVAP.
Proceeds benefit Shenandoah Valley Autism Partnership!
Members $10.00
Nonmembers $12.00
For more information about this CD and to order please contact Lynda Chandler at lynCCC@yahoo.com .
Sunday Song and Story Time
Beaver Creek Church of the Brethren offers Song and Story Time every Sunday at 9:45 a.m. for special needs adults. We convene in the church fellowship hall for (as the name implies) group singing and stories from The Beginner’s Bible. Participants need not be from the Beaver Creek congregation; we wrap up with a snack about 10:30 a.m., so that participants from other congregations could attend 11 a.m. worship at their home churches if they wished. If you know a special needs adult who might benefit from Song and Story Time, please pass word along. More information is available from Bill Wood, who leads the sessions.
Beaver Creek Church is located west of Bridgewater on Beaver Creek Road. More information is available at http://beavercreekchurchva.org .
Precious Time Program – James Madison University
http://www.iihhs.jmu.edu/precioustime/
Do you have a child with special needs? Precious Time is a pediatric respite care program that provides care givers a break. JMU nursing students are matched with families who have children with special needs. They come into your home to provide a much needed break.
Please visit their website to find out more information and learn how to participate in their program.
Welcome to www.valleyautism.org
About SVAP
We are dedicated
to improving the quality of life for all individuals with the autism spectrum disorder, including Asperger’s Disorder, Pervasive Developmental Disorders and other related disabilities.
We believe
that every person with a developmental disability has the right to live, learn and work in the most normal and least restrictive setting as possible.
A planning committee
consisting of parents and professionals meets to organize events that focus on topics related to the autism spectrum disorder. We also provide support, advocacy, networking and social opportunities for families and professionals.
We maintain
this website to disseminate information and may also hold fund raising activities as well as recruit new members. We welcome ideas and input from folks in the valley that support individuals with autism. Click here to contact us if you are interested in helping our new organization grow!
Join us
The yearly membership fee is $15 for individual or family. Here is the membership form to download and print.
Please send your membership form and payment to:
Shenandoah Valley Autism Partnership
4181 Brown Roan Lane
Harrisonburg, VA 22801