All posts by Marty Barnes

Halloween Costume Giveaway & Raffle

We received 150-200 Halloween costumes from Party City through Good 360. These costumes are all styles and sizes- something for the entire family. We have always loved Halloween and this year we are excited to be able to share the love by offering free Halloween costumes to children with special needs and their families.

Date: Saturday, September 23rd
Time: 10AM-1PM
Location: Easterseal Central Texas
8505 Cross Park Dr #120
Austin, TX 78754

All costumes are first come first serve. We will have volunteers on hand to help you find exactly what you are looking for. There will be a space to try-on the costumes as well if needed.

COSTUMES ARE FOR CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL NEEDS AND THEIR FAMILIES ONLY!

Costumes are NOT available to the general public.

For a little extra fun we are also doing a raffle. Aubrey and Taylor from Dallas donated an AMAZING stuffed unicorn. This unicorn stands over 4 feet tall, has a shiny silver horn and fluffy pink mane. It is sure to be your kids new favorite.

Entering is easy…

  • Raffle tickets will be available to families that come to pick up costumes for $1 each.
    $1 tickets are ONLY available during the costume giveaway times!
  • Raffle tickets may be purchased 5 for $10 online (follow the link below)
    Due to fees with credit card purchases online, these are only available in 5 packs.

    • Raffle tickets are available online now until Friday, September 22nd at 10PM.

Buy Raffle Tickets

DISCLAIMER:
Due to the size, we are not able to ship this prize. In order to win you MUST be able to pickup or take delivery in the greater Austin area.

Costumes are for children with special needs and their families only – this is not open to the general public.

Online raffle tickets may be purchased by anyone, you do not have to have special needs to purchase a raffle ticket online.

Palliative Care

July 18, 2017

We hear the question a lot = “What is Palliative care?”. For our July meeting Rachel, the social worker with the Dell Children’s Palliative Care Team explained what Palliative care is, what they do, who benefits from the services, and much more. If you have a child with complex medical needs, or if you are finding your child going in and out of the hospital frequently you may be interested in learning more about Palliative. We offer a few downloads, resources as well as the video from Rachel’s presentation below for anyone that was not able to join us.

Child care was provided by our wonderful volunteers from PSA Healthcare.

Info graphic (referred to in the video, but not seen in the video)

Handouts/Downloads:
Palliative Care for Children Booklet
Pediatric Palliative Care at a Glance
Palliative Care for Children Booklet (Spanish)
Pediatric Palliative Care at a Glance (Spanish)

Useful Resources:
NIH Palliative Care Information
NIH Palliative Care Information (Spanish)

Did you miss this event? No problem, you can watch the live video.
Palliative Care

Summer Fun

June 20, 2017

During our June meeting we talked about all kinds of stuff to keep the kids busy this summer. We talked about places to go, camps, things to do at home, and much more. Some of the things we discussed we specific to special needs and some were not. All of the items that we talked about can be found (along with downloads, parent feedback, and much more) on our Activity Guide (you can find the Activity Guide under Tools).

If you would like to add additional items there is an option to do so on the Activity Guide, or you can just click HERE.

There is also an option to add comments to any of our existing entries. We encourage families to share their feedback. Let us know whats good, what to watch for, how to plan, etc.

Child care was provided by our wonderful volunteers from PSA Healthcare.

Dinner was generously provided by Golden Chick

Did you miss this event? No problem, you can watch the live video.
Part 1
Part 2

Epilepsy

May 16, 2017


Our May Tuesday Talks were all about Epilepsy. We learned about different types of seizures (there are many). We talked about getting an epilepsy diagnosis. Treatment and procedure options were also discussed. Dr. Keough with Child Neurology Consultants of Austin led the very informative discussion.

Child care was provided by our wonderful volunteers from PSA Healthcare.

Handouts/Downloads:
No handouts with this discussion.

Did you miss this event? No problem, you can watch the live video.

ABA 101

April 18, 2017


Children’s Autism Center discussed all things ABA. What is ABA therapy? How is covered? Who benefits from ABA? How to go about getting ABA started? CAC offered a lot of great information as well as resources related to ABA therapy.

Child care was provided by our wonderful volunteers from PSA Healthcare.

Mas Fajitas provided a delicious dinner.

Handouts/Downloads:
Functions of Behavior
Roadmap

Did you miss this event? No problem, you can watch the live video.

Help Us Celebrate Casey’s 11th Birthday

Casey’s 11th birthday is coming up in just a few weeks. Last year we were still in fog from losing her just before she turned 10. She LOVED her birthday! Every year we would go all out. She loved to see her friends and have a day all about her. We would usually have a party on a weekend near her birthday, and if her actual birthday was on a weekday we would take her to her favorite place for lunch. Casey loved going to Chili’s. We would get her some ice cream; she couldn’t eat food by mouth, but she could taste things on her tongue. She loved to read the colorful Chili’s menu. We have a lot of special birthday memories of her at Chili’s. One year she wasn’t up to going physically so Tim went to Chili’s and got take out. He told them how much Casey loved it there and that she just wasn’t feeling up to coming that year. They gave him a menu to take home so that she could still read it while she was resting. One year she and her nurse made their own Chili’s menu full of all the Casey flair we love so much. We still have both of these menus with Casey’s books.

Shortly after Casey passed away we created Casey’s Circle to serve as her legacy and to continue all of the work she inspired. To celebrate her 11th birthday we reached out to Chili’s. On Wednesday, April 19th, from open to close, Chili’s Round Rock will giving back to Casey’s Circle. You can dine-in or take-out at any time that day at the Round Rock location (2711 S Interstate 35, Round Rock, TX 78664). Be sure to tell them you are there for Casey’s Circle. You can download our flyer and hand it to them, or just mention that you are there for the Casey’s Circle Fundraiser. 10% of every purchase that mentions the fundraiser will be donated to Casey’s Circle. Help us celebrate Casey’s birthday this year at her favorite place. We hope to see you all there!

ChilisGiveBackEvent

YMCA’s Adapted Programs and More

March 21, 2017


Vali Martin for YMCA Southwest discussed some of the adapted programs currently available at the YMCA. She also discussed one of their very popular camps (Camp in Motion) designed for children with CP with the help of Dell Children’s therapy program. PSA Healthcare provided dinner and child care. We would like to say thank you to YMCA Southwest for graciously hosting us.

Handouts/Downloads:
SNAP Brochure

Did you miss this event? No problem, you can watch the live video.