WIND Family Support Network

2003

PROJECT DESCRIPTION WIND Family Support Network 1. NEED Given the distances between Wyoming towns and its small population, people with disabilities and families of children with disabilities find it very hard to access support from other families of persons with disabilities or to know where and how to access services. While agencies will sometimes provide trainings and workshops about available services for families and people with disabilities, there needs to be a local contact to follow up with these families and individuals or training just becomes a one-time affair that has no lasting affect in the community. Another factor is that many times people with disabilities or families of children with disabilities do not attend meetings. This last point is especially true for workshops or trainings on disability issues on the Wind River Reservation. There are few phones and few working cars for the families living on the reservation; personal contact is much more effective. The needs of Hispanic families in Wyoming should also be addressed. While still small, Wyoming’s Hispanic population is larger than our Native American population. For many of these families, English is not the primary language spoken in the home. If a person with the same language or cultural background can speak with the family in a culturally competent manner, they will be able to access services more efficiently and quickly. The WIND Family Support Network (WFSN) model provides the structure and direction for these volunteer “pathfinders” to identify and support families with both young and adult children with disabilities. The (WFSN) is a statewide network of volunteer parents, family members and/or guardians of children with disabilities of all ages. The WFSN works to inform, educate and empower local families as they participate in the education and community inclusion for their children. The (WFSN) utilizes grant monies to provide quarterly trainings for the volunteers with the expectation that the volunteers will return to their communities and share the information they have received. 2. GOALS AND OBJECTIVES Goal 1: Provide immediate contact with families of children with disabilities of all ages throughout the State of Wyoming. Goal 2: Empower families of children with disabilities of all ages to be able to advocate for their children in any meeting in which they are called upon to participate by providing four statewide trainings. Goal 3: Expand the growth of volunteers within the WFSN with an emphasis on serving unserved and underserved populations. Goal 4: Maintain a collaborative working and training relationship with developmental preschools, Head Start programs, school districts and other agencies that work with people with disabilities throughout the life span. Goal 5: Conduct statewide forums to solicit input from families of children with disabilities of all ages regarding family support programs, policies and plans for such families. Goal 6: Evaluate the effectiveness of the WFSN model and adapt and modify approach as necessary. 3. UNUSUAL FEATURES Through the training provided, the volunteers become very knowledgeable about disability issues and skilled as advocates and therefore, very marketable for paid positions. In the long run, this provides stronger family support in the state, but has a negative impact to the WFSN when the volunteers leave to take paid positions elsewhere. The WFSN has always encouraged its volunteers to advocate for and empower their own families first. At times this causes PCs to realize they need to leave the Network in order to tend to their own families’ needs. At other times, the effort and cost of raising a child with a disability leaves no time for volunteer work. Whenever possible, the WFSN reimburses the extra costs involved in being an advocate in Wyoming, such as traveling many miles and spending a night away from home to assist families with meetings with professionals. 4. EXPECTED BENEFITS _ To develop a project promoting training and technical assistance for families, agencies, professionals and communities; _ To create interagency coordination and collaboration around issues of family support; _ To provide hearings and forums in local communities on disability issues; _ To identify and serve groups that are underserved and unserved; and _ To provide public awareness and education to families, agencies and communities on the services available in the state for people with disabilities.

WFSN

Training Trainees, Developing & Disseminating Information

Quality Assurance, Education & Early Intervention, Child Care-Related Activities, Health-Related Activities, Employment-Related Activities, Housing-Related Activities, Transportation-Related Activities, Recreation-Related Activities, Quality of Life

Students/Trainees (long or intermediate trainees), Professionals and Para-Professionals, Family Members/Caregivers, General Public

Racial or Ethnic Minorities, Disadvantaged Circumstances, Limited English, Geographic Areas, Reservation, Rural/Remote, Specific Groups

State

N/A