March 5, 2010
KC Autism Alliance Calls Off Walk

By Toni Lapp

An estimated 1,000 people braved rain and sleet to participate in the Autism Alliance of Greater Kansas City's walk at Unity Village in 2009. The walk will not be held this year.

An estimated 1,000 people braved rain and sleet to participate in the Autism Alliance of Greater Kansas City's walk at Unity Village in 2009. The walk will not be held this year.


After years of facing sleet, snow, freezing rains and other elements wrought by Mother Nature, the Autism Alliance of Greater Kansas City will not be organizing a fundraising walk this year at Unity Village in April — Autism Awareness Month.

The event, which had been held since 2003, had drawn over a thousand participants in recent years despite wintry conditions that inevitably developed on walk day. A Unity Village staffer said they were all set to hold the walk this April and had talked with the Alliance about possibilities.
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October 16, 2009
Robinson Steps Down From Helm at Autism Society of the Heartland

By Toni Lapp

Bill Robinson, at a rally on World Autism Day in April 2009. Robinson stepped down as president of the Autism Society of the Heartland in September.

Bill Robinson, at a rally on World Autism Day in April 2009. Robinson stepped down as president of the Autism Society of the Heartland in September.


Bill Robinson, longtime leader at the Autism Society of the Heartland, has stepped down as president of the group.

“Our bylaws said I shouldn’t have been president that long, and it was time,” said Robinson, noting that he is looking forward to a retirement that will allow him to travel.

“This was my life for the last three to four years,” he said. “At some point in time you have to let others take over.
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April 22, 2009
Two autism groups announce intent to merge

By Toni Lapp
After years of operating independently of one another, the Autism Alliance of Greater Kansas City and the Autism Society of the Heartland (ASH) have announced their intention to merge.

The new organization will be called Autism Society of America – Heartland Alliance and will feature a joint board made up of representatives from the organizations’ respective boards.

The announcement was made by Robin Russell, a founding member of the Autism Alliance, at the 6th annual Autism Walk at Unity Village on April 18. Russell was among the group that launched the area’s first autism walk in 2003.

A merger had been rumored for months, and will likely be welcome news to the nonprofit sector. Both organizations are 501(c)3 nonprofits that are run by all-volunteer boards. Both have managed to organize major events that pull in thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of dollars.
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ASK AN AUTISM SPECTRUM SPECIALIST

Games to Enhance Turn-Taking, Sportsmanship, Social Skills

By Jeanne Holverstott, M.S.

Q. I read that when Temple Grandin was a young girl, her mother hired a nanny to play turn-taking games with her to improve social skills. What sort of games do you recommend? Are there any that you don’t recommend?

A. After every holiday meal, my family would gather around the dining room table with a game purposefully selected by my mother for this occasion. I remember Taboo, Scattergories, Trivial Pursuit, Outburst. No matter the age of the player, the expectations were the same: follow the rules, win with humility, lose with grace, do your best, and never, ever complain. Games make up the fabric of a childhood and, perhaps, a lifetime, and appropriate game play opens doors to respect, friendship, and fun.

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DEVELOPING TALENTS

Intervene, Intervene, Intervene

By Kate Duffy

A while back, Toni, the SpectrumConnection editor, asked me to write about how far parents should go to help their teens on the spectrum land a job. Since then, several of our Hot Topics parents have shared their kids’ job search stories with me, and I realized there was no easy answer to her question. For the most part, though, their stories revolved around the kids’ inability to accurately read situations, to remember instructions and to multitask to make a deadline. Looking at that list, it sounds like business as usual on the job for most of us — which is why it is so very important that our kids start learning about the world of work as soon as they can.

That’s why the short answer to Toni’s question is this: do what you need to do.

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