Family Support Initiative
The Elija Foundation acknowledges the social and emotional needs of families who have been touched by autism.
We hope to create opportunites throughout the year, that will provide all family members with activities and events that will nuture this much needed area of support. Below you will see a listing of the current activities we have planned. We look forward to serving you and your family.
Creative Arts Sibling Support
Saturdays: April 5 & 12, May 3,10,17 & 31, June 7 and 14
Brothers and sisters are too important to ignore, if for only these reasons. Siblings will be in the lives of family members with special needs longer than anyone. Brothers and sisters will be there after parents are gone and special education services are a distant memory. If they are provided with support and information, they can help their autistic sibling live dignified lives from childhood to their senior years.
Throughout their lives, brothers and sisters share many of the concerns that parents of children with special needs experience, including isolation, a need for information, guilt, concerns about the future, and care giving demands. Brothers and sisters also face issues that are uniquely theirs including resentment, peer issues, embarrassment, and pressure to achieve.
No classmate in an inclusive classroom will have a greater impact on the social development of a child with a disability than brothers and sisters will. They will be their siblings' life-long "typically-developing role models."
Sources of Stress for Siblings:
Not all siblings will experience these issues, but here are some to be aware of
Embarrassment around peers.
Jealousy regarding amount of time parents spend with their brother/sister
Frustration over not being able to engage or get a response from their brother/sister
Being the target of aggressive behaviors
Trying to make up for the deficits of their brother/sister
Concern regarding their parents stress and grief
Concern over their role in future care giving
THE ELIJA FOUNDATION hopes to recognize and acknowledge through this initiative, the social and emotional needs of the typically developing children who have been touched by Autism.
We hope you will consider joining us, as we create a special time and place for these crucial family members to receive the support that they need.
