Sports Unity Program

Sounds of laughter amidst applause and cheers. Just what you'd expect to hear at a youth sports activity--but not always what you'd expect to find in a special needs sports program. My heart soars with joy each and every week we are here.

We started with the Marlton Sports Unity Program (SUP) for winter basketball. Z didn't really want to try basketball but after finding out some of his Lenape "boys" were basketball players he agreed to at least try. He wouldn't smile at check in and hung back just a bit once inside the gym, but not more than 5 minutes in a couple of the adult buddies had him out on the court and playing.

He stayed involved and interested the whole season and, when he found out they were giving out trophies one night at practice he lamented "why do they have to stop?"

Getting his trophy from the VERY special
and awesome Coach Dave

I found out there would be SUP track in the spring along with soccer (his favorite sport). I told him I'd signed him up and waned him to just give it a try. As much as he didn't want to try basketball was minimal compared to how he felt about track. April brought the beginning of track and he was nervous about starting. His buddy was laid back but welcoming and encouraging and he was off to give it a try. Now not only does he keep trying but he is working hard to excel! This boy, who hated any kind of running now trying each and every activity leaves me speechless. Running is hard for him: he has loose ligaments and very low muscle tone which makes it exhausting and difficult to run, and the jolting of running along with that feeling of speed (noises of even the wind rushing past/losing a feeling of control over his environment ) are menaces to his sensory system. Yet I see him having a blast and enjoying each moment!

Coach Scott getting in on the action to show Z technique,
with buddy Karly right by his side.

Coach Scott giving loads of one on one tips
for the Javelin throw

Z keeps working hard for Coach Scott, and his
awesome buddy Lindsey.

 

  Obstacle course running

High fives after javelin work ;)

The buddies with SUP must attend a training session where they are educated about things they may experience with the special needs kids and how to address many different potential problems (redirect, soothe, comfort, or even disengage WITH their player from the activity, among many others). They are also told they will not have cell phones out, will not be seen inactive or without their player, and WILL not be tolerated if seen laughing at/about a player. The training shows. These kids, each and every one a volunteer, show more compassion, acceptance, and enthusiasm than many paid adults I've experienced in the special needs fields! 

Mark VonBerg began and runs the Marlton Sports Unity Program which includes the activities of soccer, track, basketball, karate, cheerleading, and soon introducing street hockey. Did I mention every program run through Sports Unity Program is FREE? Thanks doesn't begin to cover it but I'll say it anyway,

THANK YOU!!!

Going Color Blind for Autism Acceptance/Autism Awareness

Each year as World Autism Awareness Day rolls around, a storm begins to brew. This year it seems to have become a behemoth of a storm, with loud rolling thunder and some nasty lightning strikes amongst people that are usually incredibly supportive of each other, sowing judgmental comments and hurt feelings with each click of the mouse.

Aren't we all striving for the same thing? ACCEPTANCE! So let's get to it! Gold for Autism Ausomeness and Acceptance? Puzzle Pieces for Perfect Pervasive Developmental Disorders? Blue for Autism Awareness? And on and on and on....? SURE! All of them are perfect. It's about starting and maintaining conversations to educate, right? Let's stick together and accept each other and realize we are all living this life together.

I like blue. I don't see it as sad as many have said. When a storm clears during the day, what do we look for? Blue sky. See my point? Know what else we look for? A golden sun. And sometimes we even see pieces of a rainbow.

Autism is every day for those of us with kiddos on the spectrum. It's laughter and tears, hugs and meltdowns, milestones and struggles, every single day. We need each other every single day to voice our fears, concerns, and JOYS. Let's come together and stay together and lift each other up.

FREE $15 CREDIT TO BUY KIDS' CLOTHES!!

Yes, this is real and legitimate! If you click on my link Schoola--Pass the Bag and Support Your School! you will see not only an amazing assortment of clothes, shoes, and accessories for kids from preschool through high school, but also after you load your shopping cart you'll see you will have a $15 "sharing" credit! No minimum to order and just for today, shipping is free on any order!! Yes, lots of exclamation marks cause this is terrific! AND FREE!! 40% of every order goes to a school in the US so this really is an incredible win-win-win. On the site you you can also get details on how to support YOUR school, too!

Happy Shopping and you're welcome. Let me know if you order! I got a pair of jeans for my teen daughter and a nice top for my son for $11, can't wait for them to get here.

Yo Math-U-SEE

Daughter this morning:

"Yo I'll never forget how much a paperclip weighs. Like it's completely in my brain. Like someday there's going to be a trivia contest question asking how much does a paperclip weigh in the metric system and I'm gonna be like, 'yo 1 gram!' and they're gonna be like 'Whoa how'd you know that!' and I'm gonna be like 'yo, Math-U-SEE, REPRESENT!'" 

Okay so yes, math is going well today. Grammar? Not so much lol. 

Rest in Peace Aunt Jeanie

A light went out on Monday morning, as my dear Aunt Jeanie passed away.

My Aunt Jeanie always made me feel beautiful and special and most of all, treasured. She adored hearing about what the kids were up to and wanted to know not just generalizations but every detail. She was proud of and loved each of them to pieces.

And she loved me. With all my insecurities I always knew Aunt Jeanie adored me, and what a gift that was!

Some of you know that I almost always would have at least one piece of Aunt Jeanie jewelry on. Every time I'd wear something of hers I would get compliments and would smile and say, "it's my Aunt Jeanie's." We'd get "Aunt Jeanie" bags with goodies that i KNOW were all mine but I would generously share with my daughters if I felt inclined lol. We all loved how we could smell her in everything that was in the bag (even the boys!) Sometimes I'd snap a picture of what I was wearing and send it to her or show her in person; the latter being the best cause I'd get to see her beam that radiant smile. At the hospital I showed her the ring I was wearing last week at a point when she had opened her eyes, and she smiled then held my hand. She held onto my hand for over an hour and when I needed to leave the room she held tighter, so I stayed until privacy really was needed and I had to let go. It hurts down to my core each time I realize I can't show her anymore.

This beautiful woman with the infectious laughter that tinkled like bells, how can she be gone? This amazing woman who marveled at and passionately embraced the freedom to practice her religion after coming to the US from the Europe of WWII, where they had to live as Catholics to survive the Nazis, how is she gone? She loved her faith and religion, loved to be near the Torah. She was actively involved in many aspects of her Temple.

And her boys, how she loved her boys, my cousins Steve, Neal, and Ron. They were everything to her. And then came the "messiah" Julian, her grandson! I loved hearing her talk about his funny stories and all he was up to as much (if not more than) she loves telling them! And oh so much pride in her beautiful Nova, who was exactly like a granddaughter to her.

My Mom. She is hurting right now. She and Aunt Jeanie would have typical big sister/kid sister situations as long as I can remember, but she loves her big sister and already misses her terribly.

Oh but then there is Uncle Herbie. Theirs is a spectacular true love. Sure they had normal moments lol, but there was no doubt they loved each other. To see the way they looked at each other there was no denying the truest love existed between them. One of the most beautiful moments I saw over the past week was when he took her hand, and she lifted it to kiss his hand. My God they loved each other. I'll repost the video of them singing another time.

I love you Aunt Jeanie. I don't really know how to do this, but I'm doing it. I miss you. We all miss you.

For those interested, the obituary is on Legacy.com