You will want to mark October 27th and 28 on your calendars and plan on attending.  I understand our keynote speaker is outstanding and there will be lots of topics for breakout sessions that you won’t want to miss.   We will not be having a regular meeting during October.  The conference will be our focal point for that month and preparing for our annual Christmas party.

I will continue my thoughts from the last newsletter on my inept ability to distinguish between Ellen’s true limitations and her ability to swindle me.  As most of you know our children are attending different schools this year from last.  We were somewhat apprehensive as to what to expect especially for Ellen’s sake what with Sperry being such a small school and all.  So far our experiences with the environment have been very positive.  Ellen spends half of her time with typical children in social and physical settings and half of her time academically with other children requiring special assistance. 

Many of you may be familiar with the different kinds of progress reports your children bring home indicating how they are fairing in the classroom.  They can range anywhere from a hand written note from the teacher to a standard form with check marks indicating behavior. 

Ellen’s progress report is pretty much a standard form with a Smile-y Face ,  a kind of average face and a Frown-y Face for a couple of different areas like: Did I listen, Did I enjoy my work, Did I work quietly, Did I do my best, etc.   Each one is colored Green, Yellow and Red respectably.  Her first day was one that was pretty average, but her second day came back all Frown-y Faces (Red).  This really brought concern to Shelley and I thinking oh no our child is going to be a problem case.  Both Shelley and I discussed the difference in the progress reports between the two days with Ellen hoping she understood our concern with her behavior at school.   We were hoping she was just pressing her limits under the new environment and that things would come in check. 

I made a point to stay home until she went to school to remind her of my expectations of her proper behavior.   That day I eagerly inquired about the results of her progress report when I got home.  Shelley was elated to inform me that Ellen received all Green Smile-y faces.  I immediately called for Ellen in celebration and she obviously knew what I was referring to as I pointed to the progress report with enthusiasm she laughed and giggled as I praised her.   I knock on wood as I inform you that she has not received a report with a red Frown-y face on it since, but I do realize we all have our days and am praying that this was just one of those days for Ellen as well. 

Let us know how your days are going! 

OUR NEXT MEETING                                                        Top of Page 
September 21st at 7:00PM
at the Special Olympics Building
Bit by Bit Horseback Therapy
We will have a speaker from Bit by Bit in Claremore explain this unique approach to therapy.  This is a great opportunity to ask questions and hear about helping your child/adult with DS acquire new skills.

July Recap                                                   Top of Page 
Valerie Campbell talked to us about homeschooling  a special needs child.  She offered many great suggestions on everything from time management to the variety of curriculums available.  She had wonderful ideas of how to incorporate learning into everyday tasks.  Laura Smith and Karen Baker were on hand as well to offer their perspective and pass out information.  Thanks to all of you for giving us information about this alternative

The Reifstecks were our gracious hosts for a pool party and ice cream social in August.  Fun was had by all.  There was ice cream and water and lots of laughter.  David and Rebecca, your giving spirit is such a blessing to DSAT.  We thank you for the many gifts you have given us. 

August Recap                                     Top of Page 
We had a relaxed, informal meeting in August.  We had the chance to exchange a lot of information.  We previewed the 2001 calendar pictures and updated everyone on our progress.  Several attendees from the National DS Society conference shared their impressions about that event and we made progress on our own “Sharing Our Joy” Year 2000 conference.  We also had time to just talk amongst ourselves and hear from some of the new parents.  We hope to have more time like this in the future. 

2001 Calendar Update                        Top of Page 
We had a far greater response to our “family” calendar picture that we ever imagined.  What a wonderful event it turned out to be.  We will use this great picture at the beginning of our calendar and in other areas as well.  Thank you cards, t-shirts (who knows!)  Many of us consider DSAT an extended family and we continue to grow and create such a positive impact in all of our communities.  Our children will reap the benefits of such a close knit group.

As you read this, our 2001 calendar is being printed and bound.  Our target release date is October 1st so we will have it ready for Down Syndrome Awareness Month.  We hope to tie publicity about the calendar with information about our upcoming conference.  Watch your mail for a postcard about where you will be able to pick up calendars.  We will let you know in advance.

For those of you who missed our August meeting and the showing of the 2001 pictures, they are incredible.  The general opinion is that we outdid last year (no small feat!) Thanks to the great families who helped us get sponsorship for EVERY PAGE of the calendar.  YEAH!!!
 

Conference Update                      Top of Page 
“Sharing Our Joy” Year 2000 
Statewide Down Syndrome Conference & Health Screening
October 27 & 28.

Our conference committee has had several meetings.  Plans are being made daily and many people are hard at work on all of the details that must be handled for this conference to be a success.  Currently you can go to our website for detailed information about the conference and before the end of September we will be mailing out registration forms with all of the information about the conference.  We need two simple things from our members:  We need volunteers for the 2 day conference and we need help in getting the word out.  This conference will be statewide and for anyone.  Many topics will be useful to people with children with disabilities other than Down syndrome.  If you or a friend or family member can volunteer please call Kim Wofford at 622-6906 as soon as possible.

In conjunction with our conference we will be having a health screening.  This is an exciting opportunity for families to bring their children/adults with DS to have screening done by many professionals in a one hour screening.  The health screening will be offered Fri afternoon the 27th from 1:00-4:00PM and Sat morning the 28th from 9:00AM - 12:00PM.  It has long been our dream to have a Down Syndrome Clinic here in Tulsa.  This is the first step, to show the professionals that there is an interest in having a group come together exclusively for the DS community.  Wouldn’t it be nice to have one place to go and see Dr.s , Therapists, etc who not only know about DS but are interested in helping the DS community as a whole?  Show your support for a clinic by participating in the FREE health screening.  This service is available to ALL individuals with DS.  The following professions will be represented at the screening:  Developmental Pediatrician, Dentist, Audiologist, Occupational Therapist, Speech Pathologist, Physical Therapist, etc.  Advance registration will be required and space will be limited.       More Conference Info

Mom’s Night Out                       Top of Page 
We still don’t have a date for the next night out.  We are concentrating our efforts on  our upcoming conference and the release of our 2001 calendar.  The response to these evenings has been great so they will continue.  Just give us a chance to catch up!

We Need Your Help!                  Top of Page 
Conference volunteers
Spreading the word about the conference
Sell Calendars
Get an article in your local paper in October for DS Awareness Month
Come and be a part of this exciting time at DSAT!

Thank You!                      Top of Page 

A special thank you to the following contributors. We couldn’t do it without you:

Dues Paid
Kathy Griffin
Robert & Barbara Conrad
Bryan & Kendra Pennington

Hot Air Balloon
Derek Masingale with Top Flights Ballooning, Inc.

Caregivers for
July meeting
Erin Beach
Laura Herd, Hailey Herd

Caregivers for
August meeting
Laura Herd Hailey Herd
Hannah Edgmon,  Sara Robberson

Public Awareness
Kim Wofford - Sertoma Club

Conference Committee
 Tracy Wilson Kim Wofford
 Erin Beach Lynette Lambert
 Kimberly Myers Jill King
 Rebecca Parrack Donna Beekman
 Gina Nelson Janice Bevel
Lori Blankenship

CALENDAR                    Top of Page 
Bit by Bit
September 21st
 Our regular meeting at the Special Olympics Building to discuss horseback therapy.
Sharing Our Joy
October 27th & 28th
 Our statewide conference and health screening.

Young Adult & Parent Panel
November 16th

Christmas Party
December 9th
For The Most Up To Date Information Visit:
http://www.dsat.org

Caregiver Coordinator
Sara Robberson, a long time caregiver for our kids has agreed to be our Caregiver coordinator.  Sara will develop a network of people to watch the kids at the meetings and set up workers for each meeting.  Sara, thank you for taking such a personal interest in our kids!

New Meeting Place
Our prayer for a new place to meet was answered by St. James Methodist Church and Richard Hight.  Richard is working with us to see if we can find a solution to our current space problem at the Special Olympics building.  We will keep you posted on the progress.  A big thanks to Richard and the folks at St. James United Methodist Church.

Oklahoma City News!                                Top of Page 
On July 15th, a group of young ladies from Pleasant View Baptist Church in Pryor, Oklahoma presented a collection of Teany Beanie Babies to the neonatal intensive care unit at St. Francis Hospital in honor of Franklin Shaull.  These young ladies belong to the Mission Seekers class which consists of girls in the fifth and sixth grade.  The Mission Seekers meet on Wednesday nights and as their name suggests, they look for areas to do mission work.  The girls who presented beanie babies are Ashley Glaze, Kammi Green, Meghan Jones, Ashley Langston and Bethany Morgan.  Beanie babies were chosen after learning from Franklin’s seven week stay in the hospital that the nurses use the beanie babies for positioning.  Babies who don’t have good muscle tone and tend to flop their arms and legs around have beanies tucked around them to position their arms and legs, babies who are on ventilators have beanies placed to help hold the breathing tube in place and also just a loving touch goes a long way to comfort a worried parent.  Word received back from the hospital was that these young ladies and their gift was the talk of the hospital and meant a great deal to a lot of parents.
 

A Story About The Cracked Pot:                    Top of Page 

A water bearer in India had two large pots, each hung on the end of a pole which he carried across his neck. One of the pots was perfectly made and never leaked. The other pot had a crack in it and by the time the water bearer reached his master’s house it had leaked much of it’s water and was only half full. 

For a full two years this went on daily, with the bearer delivering only one and a half pots full of water to his master’s house. Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it was able to accomplish only half of what it had been made to do. 

After two years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke to the water bearer one day by the stream. “I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologize to you.” “Why?” asked the bearer. “What are you ashamed of?” “I have been able, for these past two years, to deliver only half my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your master’s house. Because of my flaws, you have to do all of this work, and you don’t get full value from your efforts,” the pot said.

The water bearer felt sorry for the old cracked pot, and in his compassion he said, “As we return to the master’s house, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers along the path.”

Indeed, as they went up the hill, the old cracked pot took notice of the sun warming the beautiful wild flowers on the side of the path, and this cheered it some. But at the end of the trail, it still felt bad because it had leaked out half its load, and so again the pot apologized to the bearer for its failure.

The bearer said to the pot, “Did you notice that there were flowers only on your side of your path, but not on the other pot’s side? That’s because I have always known about your flaw, and I took advantage of it. I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back from the stream, you’ve watered them. For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate my master’s table. Without you being just the way you are, he would not have this beauty to grace his house.” 

Each of us has our own unique flaws. We’re all cracked pots. But if we will allow it, we can use our flaws to grace other tables. Don’t be afraid of your flaws. Acknowledge them, and you too can be the cause of beauty. Know that in our weakness we find our strength.

From Tracy Wilson 
 

We would love to have your stories for the newsletter; a cute story, school or sport successes,
dates of interesting meetings, seminars, or conferences.
If you find it entertaining or interesting, someone else will too.
So call Kim Wofford at 622-6906 and help us personalize your newsletter.
 
 
 

Secretary:
Marilyn LaPointe (918)  371-2279

Treasurer:
Theresa McFall  (918) 272-4406 

Newsletter: 
Kendra Pennington    (918) 889-2954     Kendra's E-mail
Kim Wofford

Calendar Coordinator
Lynette Lambert
(918) -682-6634 

Scholoarship/Library Committee
Marilyn Lapointe  (918) 371-2279
Jill King 

Party Planner
Kimberly Myers   (918) 266-3214 

New Parent Packets
Karen and Daughn Baker (918) 343-2988

Development Coordinator 
Erin Beach 

Web Master
 E-mail Tracey Wilson