Matthew Phillips of Hot Springs is one of 70 artists whose self-portraits will be on display in Washington, D.C. during a special event on September 13 to celebrate the 40^th anniversary of ANCOR, the American Network of Community Options and Resources.  ANCOR was founded in 1970 as an association of organizations that support community integration for people with disabilities. The artworks will be on display during the invitation-only special event, being held at the Smithsonian’s Donald W. Reynolds Center for American Art and Portraiture.

“This exhibit really brings the voices of people with disabilities into our celebration,” said ANCOR CEO Renee L. Pietrangelo.  “The remarkable energy, diversity and creativity of the pieces underscore the value of supporting community integration and self-expression for everyone, including individuals with disabilities.”

Also at the event, 22 individuals will be inducted into the ANCOR Foundation Legacy Leaders Circle, in recognition of their many years of service to the association and to the ideal of community supports and services.  “ANCOR is proud of these leaders, who have been at the forefront in making communities of choice a reality for people with disabilities,” said ANCOR CEO Renee L. Pietrangelo.  “And we’re especially pleased that the $30,000 raised by this class of inductees will support the professional development of the future leaders in our field.”

ANCOR is the national association representing more than 800 providers of community supports and services to more than 500,000 people with disabilities.  The association offers federal advocacy, professional and organizational development and access to innovation and best practices for and on behalf of its members.

Michael is a participant in First Step’s Art Ajar program that began in April 2008 as a means of providing a creative outlet for the adults served by the organization.  Through this program, local professional artists teach classes for interested consumers in the First Step Adult Development Program.  The group has displayed their work at Art in the Park, the Fine Arts Center and the Malco Theater.  They were invited to illustrate the publication, Natural State, a collection of 20 short stories from the Fine Arts Center’s “2009 Short Story competition.”  First Step serves individuals, birth through adulthood, with developmental delays and disabilities.  “Our organization is very proud of Matthew, and honored to have his work displayed in Washington, D.C”, said Joanne Mitchell, Art Ajar Coordinator   For more information about First Step, please call  (501) 624-6468.

 I’m so excited about all of the teamwork and support that we have been given through this event.  Garvan Woodland Gardens has been such an asset in allowing us to walk anytime there with our temporary membership cards!  Our Sponsors are wonderful so be sure to thank them by doing business with them any chance you can get.  Stay in touch and let us know how your teams are progressing.  THANK YOU ~ THANK YOU ~ THANK YOU!

Registered walkers are encouraged to come out and log some miles, visit with experts in the field of health and fitness, turn in any pledge money already collected and have a chance to win some great door prizes!  Remember to wear your Official T-shirt and bring your Temporary Membership pass to the Gardens.

It is not too late to register as a walker! Come on out and bring a friend to sign up the day of the Mid-Walk Blast.  To register is $10.00 and with that you get a t-shirt and a temporary membership pass! Then you’ll be on your way to walk a 100 miles and collect pledges or donations for each mile you walk!

Friends and Families can be reached through creating a page on our www.firstgiving.com/firststeparkansas. The Walk for Children event is listed here and donations are only a click away!!

The real reason for it all…Raising money and awareness for First Step and the Ann & Nick Tillman Project for Children with Sensory Needs!  Come and enjoy the benefits of walking while helping a great cause!  Hope to see you out there!!

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This unique and cutting-edge project was named for Nick and Ann Tillman whose daughter received services at First Step and for years lent their support to the organization. Ann Tillman chaired the 2008 Designers Vision House, the first fundraising event of the First Step Foundation. Nick and Ann lost their lives in a plane crash just days after the closing of the Designers Vision House event. Children with autism and the First Step organization were dear to their hearts. We can think of no better way to honor their memory.

Because children with autism and sensory, behavioral, and communication needs are each unique, the Ann and Nick Tillman Project will strive to find the right approach for treating each individual. Teachers, therapists and other workers will be trained in numerous techniques to meet the individual needs of participants. The ratio of staff to children will be 1:4 as opposed to the required 1:7 in other preschool programs.

First Step’s Walk for Children, premiering in 2010, will become an annual event to benefit the Ann and Nick Tillman Project and the First Step Foundation. We do not have to sit idly by while each year more and more children are diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum disorder or other sensory related disorders. This walk will be a means by which parents and others concerned about the welfare of children may be empowered. We can make our voices heard and raise funds to provide cutting edge treatment in our local community.

First Step’s Walk for Children will involve the entire community but concentrates on the business organizations located within the community. The event is chaired by ARVEST Bank President Don Gooch who will recruit 10 Industry Leaders who each recruit five Team Captains. The Captains each recruit a team of 5-12 members. The event is held over a four month period during which participants strive to walk 100 miles each. Pledges/Donations are taken for miles walked. The goal for each team is to raise $1,000. Individual walkers or community teams may participate. Those not associated with an industry team will pay a registration fee of $10. Goals for individual walkers not associated with an industry team will be $100 each. All registered participants will receive an official First Step’s Walk for Children t-shirt. Registered participants will be invited to the Kick-Off and Wrap-Up parties.

First Step was established in 1958 to serve special needs children in the Hot Springs area. Today our seven different facilities, located throughout the southern part of our state, serve approximately 1600 consumers from 27 Arkansas counties. First Step is considered a leader in the field of service to individuals with developmental disabilities. The Ann and Nick Tillman Project and First Step’s Walk for Children are the latest in our attempts to promote integration and independence of all people with disabilities.

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I started reading everything I could about it. I came to first Step and borrowed a book about Spina Bifida. I also inquired of services at First Step. I was told when she was ready to come home to call again and we would set up services for her.

Hollie was born prematurely at 29 weeks. She was med-flighted to Little Rock immediately. My doctor gave me a day to live due to the toll severe toxemia had taken on my body. Two days after she was born I was released from the hospital and went straight to Little Rock. At four days old Hollie was given a week to live. The doctors told us IF she survived she would be a complete vegetable. So I made the devastating decision to let her go. She was only on nose canal tubes but even these were removed and the doctors began letting us hold her.

I can still remember sitting up with her until 3 and 4 in the morning, holding her—thinking this would be the last time I would hold her. Not true.

Hollie is a fighter and had a lot of people who were standing behind her and praying for her. Hollie went through many hard times. She almost died a couple of different times. Through all these times, Hollie had love. She was held and talked to often. Hollie came home when she was 4 months and 10 days old.

Before coming home I went to First Step and filled out all the paperwork. It was set up for Speech to meet with her as I had a swallow study scheduled for her (she was on a silent aspirator so she had been given a G-tube to be able to go home) and I wanted to be sure I did everything possible to help her pass the study. She didn’t pass, but I didn’t lose hope. When first tested by First Step, Hollie could not pass anything. Now Hollie is leaping and bounding. She just started crawling. She can drink as long as it is mixed to nectar consistency. She has started eating table food and cheerio/fruit loops. She is such a joy.

First Step has helped us so much. They have shared my joys and also my frustrations. Some from there have come to see us when Hollie was put in the hospital. They always let us know that they care and take time to listen to us. I don’t know what I would have done this last year and a half without the training First Step has given me. They have offered me encouragement and extended their friendship.

From the therapist to the secretaries to the director—all stop to say hello and to ask how we are and to get to know US—not as case files, but as people. We all have children with special needs and one of the things we need the most is to know we are not alone. There are others that care.

Other families are also facing difficult situations. Knowing there is a program such as First Step has been wonderful. Hollie has come such a long way. Our whole family has come a long way. We have learned a lot and have drawn together more than ever.

- Carrie Stephens

He is currently in preschool in the main building at First Step. The care he gets is awesome. The ladies who work in this class are very special people. They treat my son and the other children as though they are their own children. They provide a calm environment that helps me as a parent, feel secure throughout the day in knowing he’s okay.

When Seth was first enrolled in First Step, I think it was more of a scary experience for me than him. It took him a while to adapt but the staff was always very open and sensitive to his needs. Due to a birth defect and frequent hospitalizations, he was behind in several areas.

The staff evaluated him and developed an individualized care plan. Then they sat down and discussed this with me. It took some time, but now Seth has met several of his goals and continues everyday to work toward others.

As a parent that comes to First Step on a daily basis, I’ve not only noticed my son’s improvement, but have noticed other children’s improvement also. I would like to say “thank you” for allowing my son the opportunity to attend this school. I also would like to say “thank you” to all the staff that has had interaction with my child and has helped him towards his goals.

- Emma Plummer

When we started this journey with him, we had no idea where we were going or how we would get there. We are so thankful that First Step School has been there from the early days of in-home counseling to this day where Richard is living in his own apartment, a dream come true for all of us.

Down Syndrome had a stigma attached to it in the 70s but in our Hot Springs Community there is a facility in place that helped to erase the stigma and replace it with a life well lived by a young man who doesn’t know the meaning of the word.

We are also thankful that not only was First Step there for us but it has been there and has changed lives in countless families in our community through the years and in many, many surrounding communities. There is encouragement, support and cooperation through each phase of growth for every family and client who receives services through this facility. We have been recipients of far more than we can ever repay.

We continuously let others know of the services available through this marvelous place of hope. When we came to First Step it was housed in a 20 by 40 foot building. My, how it and its services have grown and advanced and the number of people served through all these years is an awesome witness to what people with vision can accomplish.

We are indebted to the Board, the Administration and the employees who have given so unselfishly so that Richard could live and work and grow old in his own community.

Richard will live beyond us and do that competently because of what has happened is his life through what he has been given by First Step.

Thanks First Step from hearts that overflow with gratitude and appreciation and love. Thanks First Step for including our family in your vision and plans and hopes. You have provided help and the people through out Central Arkansas continue to come and will continue to come for generations unknown.

Our love and continuous prayers on your behalf.

- Dick and Wanda Holden

At this time we wish to express to our sincere thanks and gratitude for the caring support Mrs. Thomas, her staff and their aids have shown our son Christopher over the last 14 years.

In his second year with the older school age group, he appears to enjoy school and seems to be happy in his new surroundings. He is always in a pleasant mood when we pick him up in the afternoons and he is ready to go each morning. It is also seen in the faces of the other students when we arrive at school each day.

Chris’ progress in spelling and speech has been especially impressive. He continues to improve and we are happy with his achievements. “Mr. Mike” has done a great job with him this year. We realize how difficult it can be at times, but when they are faced with the everyday stress of handling the special needs of the children, your staff seems to react in a professional, caring manner.

As parents, we feel that we are truly blessed to have an organization such as First Step to come to our aid and provide the professional personnel facilities that are needed for our special children.

Again, thank you and your fine staff for the job they are doing at First Step. I’m sure I speak for the other parents as well, when we say we appreciate you and your organization.

- George and Linda Downie

We just want to let you know how Elijah has progressed during the time we have had him. His speech is better. My husband and I can understand him better. He knows his ABC’s and numbers better as well as his colors. He is also catching onto word skills. He is listening to story time (I read to him every night).

We also noticed since he has been in First Step he has progressed tremendously in the few months that we have had him. We just want to thank the classroom 10 teachers and the school for keeping us up to date on Elijah’s progress. My husband and I wanted to give classroom 10 a pat on the back -WELL DONE – GOOD JOB – keep up the good work in being dedicated teachers and helping Elijah to grow.

- Mr. & Mrs. Browning