Understanding Differences Regular Updates

 

Update 1  Update 2  Update 3  Update 4  Update 5  Update 6  Update 7  Update 8

Understanding Differences   

A Self-Help Group

Raising Awareness to Support Children who have Experienced Difficult Times

 

UPDATE    October 2003 to June 2004

The purpose of UPDATE is to keep you informed on the progress of the group, what we have achieved, spent, meetings, your stories, why you have an interest in the group and hopefully supportive comments from recognised bodies to help us on our way……..

MONEY SPENT        

The start of this whole project began when I wrote a short poem.  

 

My need to do something to Raise Awareness of Congenital Heart Disease was so great that I ordered a qty of notebooks with this embossed on the front-I thought the heart charities would be interested to sell them and receive the profit and also hoped that this would be the starting point to gain support and interest for families to be a part of a local network of Raising Awareness of similar issues.  

 

I was having a stall at the Christmas fair and then rushed into having some cards printed that the children had done-Raising Awareness of CHD, Diabetes, Epilepsy and Different Families situations. I then had to buy the envelopes, cellophane wrappers and bags to put them in.  

 

I posted and delivered approx 50 of the notebooks and sets

of cards along with a letter explaining my mission.  

 

 I got a few back, with no support and unfortunately, the others seemed to go astray.

 

I have used 3 black and 3 tricolour ink cartridges approximately £135 and still don’t seem to have much interest yet!

Stamps to post flyers.

A ring binder, laminator and the accessories needed to use them.

A long arm stapler.

Approximately £130 of books to show as sample packs in the schools, folders and baskets to present them in.

I have also gone for an anytime package on the internet as I never really used it before.

We met at Springboard which cost us £60.

 

I think that is everything.!!

No its not…

I also purchased a Group membership for admission to the adventure playgrounds-however we have an issue with them regarding all arriving and leaving at the same time. The whole point of our group is bringing together families that mainly have illness or disability, meaning that some have medication and others may tire more easily, this is on top of the normal daily things that can go wrong when you have children,

 

Traffic and so on! We are hoping this matter will be resolved as it appears that there is a misunderstanding as to whether we are really a group or whether we should purchase family memberships. The correspondence will be posted on the notice board so you can see the details if you are interested.

GRANTS

The group has been awarded

£550 from THE SCARMAN TRUST. This money has not

yet been claimed as we  needed a bank account first. Now we have this I will

contact them.  I was extremely surprised to receive a cheque for £250

from Gatwick Airport

Community Fund as I was

strongly advised not to put the application in.

 

MEETINGS

Don’t forget we meet at the pub every 4th Monday at 6pm!

Brewsters at Tilgate Park, Crawley.

See the notice board for any changes or additional meetings that we arrange.

 

THAT’S IT FROM ME

You already know about me from the information pack so I now hope to pass you over to some of the other members now-well maybe next time.

 

Hi, I’m Karen Hutchings.

 

I am married to Graham and we have a little boy called Alex who has been both the joy and the trauma of my life in the last few years.

 

Alex is 4 years old and was born with a rare chromosome abnormality (deletion of part of 16p chromosome). This means he has moderate learning difficulties,

Ref: UD Update 1 - Page 1 of 2

Ref: UD Update 1 - Page 1 of 2