Central Highlights for May Massflash

April had its ups and downs for Central Region.

We lost our beloved Central Workteam President and friend, Janet Laperle.

She was a patient and confident leader and she treated each one of us as special.

Central had our first zoom meeting in April. We enjoyed getting together! We saw a couple of new faces and some that we hadn’t seen in a while. We all checked in on how we are doing, and John Mullaly did some breathing and yoga movement with us. We went through the MASS Flash and showed videos and songs online. It was fun! We talked about our rights with medical issues. John Mullaly wrote a letter to Governor Baker about that. Also, some people cannot reach their DDS Service Coordinators. Teka said she would make sure everyone had the DDS phone number they needed. We look forward to our zoom meeting calls, and Jackie Dulmaine, Seth and the group will be joining a class at Quinsigamond College for a training on self-advocacy. We also plan on having our guest speaker, State Rep Natalie Higgins speak with us soon! Deb Pierce and Seth Gaston attended transportation meetings in April, and Deb joined the REDD Group meeting too. Justin is keeping up to date on legislative issues. Our grant projects are humming along. We are thankful for our Central board members Jillian and Karen. Thank you to our many Central Region leaders!

The Central Region has had a good month in March even though half of it was spent at home!

At our regional work team meeting in March we had a presentation by Jillian Berube about making DREAM BOARDS, and she shared her hopes and dreams using her own board. Deb Pierce has worked on emergency preparedness so she helped us discuss the Covid 19 virus and how to keep healthy, including safe travel and taking public transportation. Deb also sends cards to those in the group who are sick or have had surgery. We wish at least three members to get well soon…we miss you! Justin Bernard also presented about voting. It was a great meeting!

Several people attended The Arc of Mass and MDDC Day at the State House. Honorees were Rep Michlewicz and Sen Patrick O’Connor. Justin reports that :”The event was good with about 400 people. Also got a chance to meet with my local legislators/aides. Jillian and her mom were there too with about 6 from Center of Hope. Great keynote speaker.” And we love the take home flyer with tips for successful advocacy!

We plan to hold TWO regional meetings in April by zoom call: Tuesday, April 14th and Tuesday, April 28 from 1-3 PM. Click on this link to join the meeting: https://zoom.us/j/988205111

We will let you know when we are offering more call ins too, so stay tuned! THE GREAT NEWS is that we will be joined by some members who haven’t had rides to the meetings…now you can call into the meeting!!! We are learning so much about how to be creative and stay connected!

We want to thank all of our staff and supporters for helping us stay connected through this tough time!

Our OVW Mass Rights for Change grant project team has met a lot during the month. We are working on plans to improve access to needed services for survivors of sexual assault. Our Central Awareness and Action team held two trainings in March and we cannot wait to get out and do more! The team even had an interview with Fox 25 about how abuse is a big issue and how important our training is!

So what is ahead for Central? We can’t wait for spring flowers to appear and to be able to get out with our friends once again!!! We look forward to having a meet and greet to welcome new members who join us for our phone meetings…. including self-advocates from the THRIVE self-advocacy group and others we have met. We are working on an online presentation for Quinsigamond Community College students! We also look forward to getting out to host tables at events like ADA 29 in Worcester and to join the REDD Group and transportation meetings as soon as we can. Meanwhile, we are excited to connect with local self-advocacy groups and host zoom calls to keep self-advocates near and far in Central Mass connected!

Spring has finally arrived……Happy Spring everyone!

The Central Region had a good month in February. We met with our REDD Group and we continue to work on transportation, thanks to Debbie Pierce, our transportation rep.

At our regional work team meeting in February we had a powerpoint presentation by Tess, a mobility specialist with the WRTA. We had a great discussion about safe travel and taking public transportation. JustinBernard also presented about voting. It was a great meeting!

On Feb 10th Janet spoke about self-advocacy at a Human Services class at Quinsigamond Community College. Great job Janet!

Our OVW Mass Rights for Change grant project team has met a lot during the month. We are working on plans to improve access to needed services for survivors of sexual assault. Our Central Awareness and Action team has hired a new trainer, Melissa Beauregard, and she attended her first training this month. Welcome Melissa! And…just in time….we have a busy month of training ahead!

The HMEA Hopedale Day Program (where we hold many grant project meetings)has moved to a beautiful new building in Franklin. An open house was held on Feb 26th.

So what is ahead for Central? We can’t wait for spring!! We look forward to having a meet and greet in March to welcome new members including self-advocates from the THRIVE self-advocacy group and others we have met. We also look forward to hosting tables at regional transition fairs and our legislative breakfast, attending events like “Light It Up Blue” and our regional self-direction support group, REDD Group and transportation meetings in March. We are also excited to connect with Building Bridges self-advocacy group on April 1st!

Spring is just around the corner……Happy Spring everyone!

Central region started off the new year with a look at the many activities and events we did in 2019 and those we plan to do in 2020!

We attended the self-direction support group and shared what we do at MASS with parents and young adults there. Some of us watched and videotaped the historic passing of Nikki’s Law.

Some of us have been very busy with the R3 and Mass Rights for Change grants. We also trained 24 DDS Service Coordinators in what MASS and self-advocacy are all about.

We attended the Worcester area transportation meetings and the REDD Group. The new theme for transportation advocacy is “Don’t Just Sit There!” Check out on Facebook the “Waiting For The Bus” page where you will find great news and discussions about transportation.

We look forward to guest speakers at our upcoming regional meetings, including a WRTA mobility specialist, an area legislator and ally who is interested in transportation, our DDS Regional Director, and others. We are also preparing to host tables at upcoming transition fairs. We will also be planning some activities about voting to prepare for the 2020 elections. What a busy year ahead!