Happy Tuesday! This is just a quick reminder that the 2021 Annual Toy Giveaway is this weekend.
Are you registered? The event is this Saturday and Sunday (December 18 & 19th), from 10am-4pm. It will be a drive-thru event in the UCP parking lot. The event is for families who are raising children who experience cerebral palsy or a related disability. We'll have lots of toys to give away, holiday music, and some festive helpers!
We can't wait to see you. Happy December from UCP Oregon's Family Support Department!
We're excited to announce the 2021 Annual Toy Giveaway. The event will be held on December 18 & 19th, 10am-4pm. It will be a drive-thru event in the UCP parking lot. The event is for families who are raising children who experience cerebral palsy or a related disability. You must RSVP to participate. Each family will get a 15 minute time slot. We'll have lots of toys to give away, and some festive helpers! We can't wait to see you. Do you have negative emotions stuck inside you? Would you like to learn a simple way to move them out? Join Lenore Eklund (a UCP parent, author and illustrator) for an hour of approachable art exercises. You'll open up new space, and learn to express yourself through spontaneous drawing. You don’t need art experience or special supplies to participate! All you need is a pencil (or another drawing tool of your choice), paper, and an interest in exploring what you could create. The workshop is free, and it will be held online via Zoom. PS: Lenore recently published a book, Release: A NICU Fairytale. Learn more about it here.
As you probably know, we recently held an online chat with a UCP mom, Lenore Eklund, who wrote a book (Release: A NICU Fairytale). Lenore discussed the process of dealing with NICU trauma.
The event went really well! It was attended by several UCP families, friends of families, and educators. Many different experiences and perspectives were shared. Lenore said she woke up the next day feeling "so invigorated!" Lenore added, "I think the conversation deepened the understanding of what families experience in the NICU. I also think the connections made between those in attendance will help grow the network of support that is so vital for this medical marathon most of us are on." Even more exciting--Lenore said that there was talk about creating more space for releasing trauma through art. "It is something I'm really interested in, so I am looking forward to exploring more of this with the community." Woo hoo! Thanks to Lenore for speaking, Katherine Ball for coordinating, and all the attendees! As you may know, we’re hosting a discussion with the author of a new book, who just happens to be one of the moms in UCP’s Family Support Department! On October 7th, Lenore Eklund will be talking about her book (Release: A NICU Fairytale), and the process of dealing with NICU trauma at our event. Register here. We thought it would be fun to learn more about Lenore before the event. Thanks for answering our questions, Lenore! MEET LENORE:1. How did Charlie end up in the NICU?
About 10 days before I had Charlee, we learned she had excess spinal fluid causing a lot of pressure on her brain. We had to switch gears very fast and plan a c-section delivery up at OHSU. Charlee was born 3 weeks early. 2. What was your NICU experience like? There was so much uncertainty around why the conditions were keeping her in the hospital. As our stay lengthened, we searched for answers to figure out why her oxygen saturations sporadically dropped, why she continually had bradycardic episodes, and why she was unable to eat by mouth. Medical providers had ideas of procedures and surgeries to try. Some of the ideas we were able to discuss together and dismiss. Some of the ideas made us feel backed into a corner. No one could tell us which decision was the right decision to make. 3. How did you end up coming up with your book idea? During Charlee's second neurosurgery when she was just over a year old, a support worker gave me a care package that had some colored pencils and a sketchpad. I started drawing boats rolling in waves and happy suns playing in the clouds, but I made a comic about something that was really frustrating me about the hospital and that felt really, really good to get out. That's when I started on Charlee's birth story and our story of being in the NICU. 4. What was the process of writing it like? The graphic novel was also about releasing all of my feelings of anger, overwhelm and uncertainty. The act of making this book was about sending those feelings through my body and out onto paper. It was something I could spend hours in the evening doing after Charlee went to bed or on busy days, a couple minutes between running laundry and starting a feed. 5. What are your hopes for the book and/or the people reading it? By releasing this story through publication, it is my hope the story will provide a conversation around preventing unnecessary NICU and hospital trauma, supporting families through medical crises and healing unresolved emotions. Hey, guess what! One of the moms in our Family Support Department, Lenore Eklund, recently published a book! Way to go, Lenore!
We hope you'll join us in celebrating Lenore and her book, during a virtual event on October 7th. Lenore will give us a virtual tour of her book, "Release: A NICU Fairytale." She'll also be discussing how to process NICU trauma through art. This is a free event (held online via Zoom), but you must RSVP to participate. PS: All participants will have the chance to win a free copy of the book! Did you know that UCP Oregon has a Support Group? We do! It's called
Gimme A Break" (GAB). GAB is open to all Oregon & SW Washington families who are raising a child with any disability. GAB has always met in the evenings. But, due to popular demand, we've added a new DAYTIME GAB! Our first Daytime GAB will be held on Wednesday, April 21 at 11am. Happy New Year!
We wanted to take a moment to acknowledge all the amazing helpers who helped us pull off UCP's first-ever Drive-Thru Toy Giveaway. First of all, thanks to UCP's Family Support Director, Katherine Ball, for creating and running the event! Also, thanks to Sarah Noack, Director of UCP Connections (UCP's Brokerage); Jeni Davis, a UCP Board Member and owner of New Horizons; and Martha Terry, an awesome UCP employee. All of them volunteered to help us make this a great event for our families. Thank you! Woo hoo! This weekend, we held our first ever Drive-Thru Toy Giveaway, and it was... AWESOME!
Thanks to Santa, all the elves, and, most especially, our Family Support Director, Katherine Ball, for all their hard work! We'll be sharing more pics soon. In the meantime, here's a great pic from today. Katherine is spending the day delivering toys and joy to the families that couldn't make it to the event. Exciting news: UCP's Family Support Director, Katherine Lee Ball was on the news this morning with FOX 12!
Katherine was picking up toys for our 2020 Toy Giveaway Drive-Thru. Katherine says she is "so excited to be Santa’s helper to spread joy this holiday season." Thank you to everyone who is making the 2020 Toy Giveaway possible, especially Fox 12, Les Schwaub and Portland Fire and Rescue Recruits! We love you! Learn more about the Toy Giveaway here. |
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