Support Families Forward
 
|
Welcome to the Families Forward Online Community! Thank you for visiting our website. Families Forward is a group, facilitated by Gateway Association, consisting of families who have a loved one with a developmental disability and want to connect with other families. Families support, inform and share their experience and resources with one another and offer mentorship to one another in areas such as funding, staffing, and employment in relation to their family member. If you would like more information about Families Forward or if you are in need of resources or support feel free to call Gateway Association at 780 454-0701.
|
|
Families Forward Scheduled Meetings 2010/2011 |
- September 30/10: Open forum
- November 25/10: Advocacy 101
- January 27/11: Open forum
- February 24/11: Employment (follow-up to Gateway's yearly FOCUS event)
- April 28/11: Open forum
- May 26/11: Staffing
Families Forward meetings are held at the Gateway Association boardroom (18304 105 Ave., Suite #105). Meetings start at 7pm. For more information please contact Renate Burwash 780 454-0701 ext. 233 or through the web site. New this Fall: A PDD representative will be dropping in at our meetings for a half hour to share with the group updates or changes and to connect with families. This will be a great opportunity for families to stay connected and share valuable feedback with PDD. |
|
|
Family Network Group Meetings (Bi-monthly, between Families Forward Meetings) |
|
Funding for our family members with developmental disabilities always seems to be on the chopping block. In part, that’s because families affected by disability do not seem to have a significant political voice. Those with developmental disabilities have difficulty speaking up, and their families are often too exhausted to take action. Recently, I’ve learned that another reason is that our MLAs do not know much about the challenges our kids, adults and families face. When faced with a decision to make, they have nothing much to inform them, so they look to the bottom line.
|
|
Read more...
|
|
Families Forward and the Gateway Association now have a new office! You can now find us at Suite 104, 18304, 105 Avenue, Edmonton, AB. Also note that all future Families Forward meetings will take place at this location. |
|
Supports Intensity Scale (SIS) |
|
Over the next three years all individuals who receive funding from PDD will be asked to participate in an assessment designed to provide insight into the nature of supports that people currently require, or may need in the future, in order to succeed in their life.
For more information on SIS, contact the SIS Team Leader, Ryan Poppelstone, at 780-644-2702
|
|
|
Upcoming Family Managed Support Workshops |
|
Families Forward is now starting its 2010-11 series of Family Managed Support workshops! The workshops are a great chance to learn about techniques, tools and resources for Person Centred Planning, Abuse Prevention, and much more! To download a full schedule and registration form, click here. |
|
Administrative Review:
In June, Minister Jablonski (whose portfolio manages the PDD program) announced an Administrative Review to look at how the money PDD gets from the government is being spent.
The Administrative Review is meant to determine how PDD and agencies can better use the money they get in order to be more cost efficient. The Minister is assuring families that any money saved will be going directly back to the people PDD provides funding to.
PDD has hired KPMG to perform the review. KPMG has asked some families to join focus groups in order to provide their input and suggestions.
For questions about the review, be a part of a focus group, or to give your comments or suggestions you can contact KPMG at
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
or 780 429-7342 |
|
Gateway's 11th Annual Women's Retreat |
Gateway Association's 11th Annual Women’s Retreat will be held on January 29th and 30th. This year’s retreat is going to be all about relaxation and rejuvenation, with massage, meditation, reiki, yoga and more. Space is limited to 30 women, so book early!
For more information, click here. |
|
|
|
|
|
Connect to Forum For more information about Families Forward or its website, please contact Renate Burwash by clicking here, or at (780) 454-0701. If there's a resource you’d like to see added to this site, please let us know!
Events Calendar
Click anywhere on calendar to see monthly events
|
