Thank you Volunteer Services to Hotel Dieu!

Volunteers have been an integral part of Hotel Dieu and our community for more than 100 years!  They make a significant contribution to the hospital, both in terms of time and talents given and monetary donations.   At this week’s annual board meeting, the Volunteers to Hotel Dieu presented a cheque in the amount of $10,000 to KidsInclusive!  Some of these funds are used to assist families with the purchase or lease of special equipment.

Ben who is 4 years old (turning 5 on Christmas Eve by the way!) uses an iPad with an App called Proloquo2Go to help him communicate. Thanks to help from the Volunteer Fund, Ben’s family was able to purchase this device for him. At board meeting, Ben was able to communicate some info about himself, his family, and say thank you to the Volunteers himself!

Local youth share their experiences with Provincial Advocate for Children & Youth!

Logan Stewart and Brooke McKillen recently had the opportunity to speak about their lives and experiences with the Provincial Advocate for Children and Youth, Irwin Elman and staff Sandy Wynia-Katz.  Both Logan and Brooke were able to openly discuss their disability and their experiences both positive and negative.

November 20, 2014 marked the 25th anniversary of the signing of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC).  To celebrate this milestone, the Provincial Advocate for Children & Youth launched a “listening tour” which now takes place each year around the week of November 20th.   During this year’s tour, Irwin Elman travelled to different communities (including ours) to ‘listen’ with the intention of developing a ‘”shadow report” created from the voices of youth in his mandate.  The following link is to the 2016 report titled “We Have Something To Say”:

https://www.provincialadvocate.on.ca/documents/en/We-Have-Something-To-Say-Report-EN.pdf

KidsInclusive and Kingston’s Nightime Santa Parade!

KidsInclusive kicked off the holiday season with their first ever float in Downtown Kingston’s Nighttime Santa Claus parade on Saturday November 18th.  The float’s theme was “Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer – Celebrate Differences”.  We were thrilled that the rain held off and everyone had a great night.  Thank you to all our little elves, reindeers and their families who participated in the parade and to Aarde Construction for donating their truck and flat bed for the float!

Youth Group Halloween Party!

 

What a Spook-tacular Day!

Youth and staff from KidsInclusive (pictured above-left) pose for a photo during our Halloween PA Day Party on Friday, Oct 27th.  Youth came dressed in their favourite costume for an afternoon filled with crafts, karaoke and trick or treating.  Above-right, KidsInclusive had a very special visit from Dexter, the evil scientist (Justin V) and Mini Mouse (Katelyn S)!

 

 

 

On The Road Again!

On The Road Again!

Janessa Gerhardt has a cool, new set of wheels thanks to Queen’s University engineer, Claire Davies and her team of 4th year students (Building and Designing Assistive Technology Lab).

Due to Janessa’s limisted range of motion she was unable to pedal a traditional bicycle.  The students redesigned the crankshaft of a 3-wheel bike along with other design modifications, and now Janessa has wheels again!  Go Janessa!

For more information on this story go to: http://www.queensu.ca/gazette/stories/road-again

Friendship Camp 2017!

Ameliya’s life was turned upside down after catching a common cold

Last fall, Ameliya was diagnosed with a rare disorder called Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS).    When she  was sick with a cold a couple weeks prior, her body created anti-bodies to attack the virus; however, those anti-bodies turned on her and started to attack her nervous system and the myelin insulation surrounding the nerves.   At the height of her illness, Ameliya could no longer sit up, walk, or hold her head up on her own.  Following a lengthy inpatient stay at CHEO, Ameliya began attending therapy at KidsInclusive.  She continues to amaze us with her strength, fighting spirit and her mischievous giggle during weekly appointments.   Recently, Ameliya’s family organized a fundraiser to raise awareness for GBS; community members had the opportunity to participate in a silent auction, enjoy great food, face painting and Little Rays Reptiles!  The Pellett family graciously chose to donate funds raised to CHEO and KidsInclusive where Ameliya had received treatment, as well as the GBS Foundation to further research.

We were honoured to receive a cheque for $1000 from Ameliya and her mother Miranda!  Thank you from KidsInclusive!

img_0966

img_0967

             Ameliya with KidsInclusive Physiotherapist, Karen Forbes

 

FASD Awareness Day Breakfast (Sept 8, 2017)

capture

I Can Bike!

© Copyright - KidsInclusive Centre for Child & Youth Development