We hope this Wednesday finds you Wearing and Sharing Orange to show unity for kindness, acceptance, and inclusion and to send a visible message that no child should ever experience bullying. At Families as Allies, we are committed to every family and child feeling welcomed and supported and working together to make things better for all of our children. 

 

This week brings many opportunities to share your thoughts, questions and suggestions about how we can work together. On Wednesday, October 20, at noon we will have our monthly virtual Supportive Coaching for Parents Supporting Other Parents for parent peer support specialists, parent consultants, parent advisors, or any parents supporting other parents in any system. This is a chance to share ideas, support one another and learn more about best practices in parent-to-parent support. We hope to see you there. Later that same day from 6:30 - 7:30 p.m. is Families as Allies Quarterly Board Meeting. The meeting will be virtual. All meetings are open to the public and include time for public comments. If you have feedback for the board but cannot attend, comments can be faxed to 601-355-0919 or emailed to [email protected]. On Thursday, October 21 at noon we will host our virtual Bring Your IEP and Other School Questions Drop-in Hour. You are welcome to drop in for any or all of the hour. The 8th Annual Virtual Black Family Summit is this Thursday from 9 AM to 4 PM. 

We also encourage all of you to read Mental Health America's just-released report on the State of Mental Health and also check out this statement from the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP) and Childrens Hospital Association declaring a national emergency in childrens mental health. Although these reports are sobering, they also provide hopeful recommendations about how to support our children. We appreciate that the recommendations include providing mental health support in the places our children already are - in school and primary care. 

Next week, we encourage you to attend the The Special Education Advisory Panel Meeting Wednesday at 10 and to join us for our Drop-In Leadership and Policy Discussion Thursday at noon. Please check out additional events from our partners both in this newsletter and on the events page of our website.    

We continue to invite anyone who has a story to tell about how the kindness and support of others helped with vaccine hesitancy to share your story with us. We are producing a video to help and support others who might be feeling the same way. You can call us at 601-355-0915 or email [email protected] for more details. Participants will receive a stipend for their time.  

- Joy