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Calling all
families in the Bay Area who have young children with Prader-Willi
syndrome. Bethany Cheney
has agreed to assist us in setting up a local information and
support network just for you! This might mean one-to-one support,
creating a group, planning workshop sessions pertinent to your
child, or just getting together to network on things that work best
for your children. To get in on the ground floor and to work with
Bethany to get this going, please contact her via e-mail at
s.b.cheney@att.net
Prader-Willi-Syndrome Brochure
(click to view and print)
 Janet
Atkinson is the Director of Family Support & Outreach Services in
Hillsborough and Polk Counties. Her
position includes the supervision of the Family Resources Specialist
(FRS) unit. Janet is the proud parent of a child with special needs.
Her son is Taylor. Taylor has cerebral palsy and needed help to
learn to walk and to talk. He is also considered a child with
“fragile health”. She knows what it is like to feel overwhelmed with
problems and to be in need of the support of another parent. Janet
provides the mentorship and supervisory support to the other
Family Resource Specialists who work with the local Early Steps.
Each local Early Steps is required to have FRS involved in their
local program. The FRS must be a family member of a child who
received early intervention services or would have been eligible for
early intervention services. The FRS serves as a resource for
families served through the local Early Steps and serves as a
community link to support family centered efforts and activities
within the local Early Steps. The FRS advocates for families served
by expressing the views, perspectives and needs conveyed by
families. The FRS also solicits feedback from families receiving
early intervention services to ensure diverse input regarding
programs, policies, and the delivery of early intervention
services. The FRS also works with the Early Steps teams to provide
training to providers and other parents as well as making
presentations at conferences to promote awareness of supports and
services available to children and families in the program.
Remember that Family Resource Specialists are first and
foremost…..parents! They are very aware of the pressures and
sacrifices parents go through to raise children who have special
needs. They offer their services as a sounding board for parents
concerns relating to their own family situations. They are not
medical professionals. They may have knowledge of different medical
conditions and medical terms, but they don’t evaluate, diagnose, or
prescribe treatments for children. They help families and children
find support.
To contact Janet Atkinson, please call (813) 375-3980, ext. 23 or
e-mail her at
jatkinson@tampabay.rr.com
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