health mind and body

Achiezer health event is another trailblazer

Posted

On May 31, Achiezer introduced SpecialCare+, a forum for parents and caregivers of the special needs community; providing them access to information, support and resources. 

“For us at Achiezer, there is nothing more rewarding than being able to witness, firsthand, the positive impact we can have on people’s lives,” said Achiezer’s founder and president, Rabbi Boruch Ber Bender.

Geared towards parents, caregivers and family members of children affected with special needs, the event drew more than 200 people seeking guidance, advice and referrals.

SpecialCare+ consisted of two components. The first was a vendor expo featuring providers of special needs services.

Products, services and information offered covered the areas of education, healthcare, specialized equipment, emotional support, summer camp, extracurricular/respite, family resources, advocacy, day hab/residential, adult planning, financial and legal services. 

The second portion of the event was divided into two, hour-long, consecutive breakout sessions, each of which catered to the specific ages and stages of special-needs children and young adults.

Parents and caregivers were able to select and attend the sessions in topics they were most interested in learning about, ranging from legal and financial issues, to social skills, to parenting, to navigating city and state services, to detecting learning disabilities, to group home placement.

Attendees left feeling empowered, having gained knowledge on various topics, having collaborated with peers going through similar challenges, and, most importantly, they left with a very important resource book in hand. A resource book assembled by Achiezer staff members includes pertinent information regarding every vendor at SpecialCare+ as well as some others who were unable to attend but have what to offer to the special needs community.  

The enthusiastic comments received by Achiezer both during and after the event were remarkable.

“I wanted to thank Achiezer for, as always, accepting achrayus for the community, no matter how daunting or challenging the task or project is,” said Joel Kaplan, president of On Our Way Learning Center. 

To  hear audio of any of the speeches, to receive a copy of the resource guidebook, or for more information email specialcare@achiezer.org or visitachiezer.org.

Achiezer would like to express its gratitude to Gourmet Glatt for once again generously sponsoring a lavish dinner buffet at SpecialCare+, personally overseen by Yoeli Steinberg, Gourmet Glatt general manager and close friend and supporter of Achiezer.