We are currently seeking sponsors for the event and can offer you substantial recognition in return for your donations (visit our website for further details). In the event that you are unable to sponsor our fundraising event, we invite you to consider donating items for our silent or live auction
We look forward to receiving confirmation of your sponsorship level. A charitable donation receipt for the maximum amount permitted by law, will be available, if requested.
In order to ensure that you are able to benefit from a full recognition of your sponsorship, we would need to be notified by Friday, April 16, 2010 to include your logo in our ticket brochure. Tickets to the event are $75., please contact the office.
June is Brain Injury Awareness Month and a candlelight vigil will be part of the event. We hope that many of our "survivors" will join us. If you are not able to use all tickets in your package, we kindly ask that you allow us to donate these tickets on your behalf to our ABI survivors.
Close to half a million Ontarians currently live with an acquired brain injury (ABI), and 18,000 new cases are added every year. Brain injury is significantly more prevalent than breast cancer, spinal cord injury and HIV/AIDS. And yet, ABI survivors are largely invisible to the general public and forgotten in the Province's health care and social services system.
Ontario's health care system does a great job of patching people up in the immediate aftermath of their injury but, once they are released from hospitals and rehab facilities, ABI survivors are often left on their own.
With no comprehensive system in place, many ABI survivors fall through the cracks. Based on preliminary findings from a new research study, it is estimated that slightly more than half (53 percent) of homeless people in Toronto have histories of brain injury.
Preliminary findings from a study on the inappropriate placement of ABI survivors, found that 44 percent of the prison population in Ontario also have a history of brain injury. As well, ABI survivors are often inappropriately placed in long-term care homes and psychiatric hospitals. There, without specialized treatment, any progress they achieved in rehab is usually lost. Meanwhile, children with ABI often go undiagnosed in the school system and are mislabelled and misunderstood. It is estimated that there are some 27,000 children with ABI in Ontario's schools.
Over the last decade, advances in medical technology have resulted in a dramatic increase in life expectancy for persons with brain injuries, which means the number of people living with ABI in our communities is increasing every year.
The Mission of the Brain Injury Association of Peel & Halton – BIAPH – is to enhance the quality of life for persons in the Regions of Peel and Halton who are living with the effects of acquired brain injury, through: education, awareness, support, advocacy and prevention.
BIAPH is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors. Together with the Executive Director, who reports to the Board at monthly meetings, programs are developed, delivered and evaluated. Since BIAPH does not receive any government funding, we rely on corporate sponsors, donations and fundraising events to continue doing the work that we do.
I thank you for your consideration. I would be very pleased to speak to you further about this worthwhile fundraising event.
Yours very truly,
Jorun Rucels
E-mail: jorun.rucels@biaph.com
Annual General Meeting
BIAPH will hold it's Annual General Meeting on June 15th. All members of BIAPH are welcome to attend. We ask that members contact the BIAPH office by June 5th if you are planning to attend. More information and location will be available on our website soon.
Helmets on Kids
In June, as part of Brain Injury Awareness Month in Ontario, BIAPH will participate in the Helmets on Kids program in the Peel and Halton regions, providing 500 helmets for kids.
Survivor's Corner
Ron Ilchyna
Ron Ilchyna, a brain injury survivor, wrote and presented this speech last year and has graciously shared it with Pathways.
Madame Toastmaster, fellow Toastmasters and guests.
Speech: the ability to speak. Think about it. Your brain comes up with the thoughts that you want to say and then hands it off to your mouth to get those thoughts out. Who really pays attention to what is going on when we speak? Your lungs play a part; so do your vocal cords. Your mouth and a few other body parts are also in there to take credit. But I think most of us take it for granted because the thoughts in our mind flow easily out of our mouths in one fluid motion.
Back it up a few steps, back to the beginning. Your brain comes up with the thoughts and then the other body parts take over to get the thoughts out.
Imagine this: your brain comes up with the thoughts, no problem, but somewhere in the hand-off, the thoughts get lost... or scrabbled... however you want to imagine it. Somewhere the hand-off is disrupted and when it is time for your mouth to take over, it is now a jumbled mess.
Again, take it back to the beginning. Your brain has these thoughts that it wants to get out as speech, but the filing cabinet of all the words has been tipped over, leaving them scattered all around the floor of your mind. You know what you want to say, but you are left scrambling to find the words in the mess that is strewn on your mind's floor.v
Standing here, reciting this speech is not the speech I am describing. As long as I have done my part and memorized my words that I have put on paper, it should go well. I am just repeating memorized thoughts. I have read and re-read what I am going to deliver many times: as I said, I am just repeating. Certain animals can do this. But can they formulate thoughts and transfer them into the spoken word?
If you speak another language, you may understand what I am talking about when I describe the tipped over filing cabinet. When speaking in your second language, do you not have to really think hard to find the words you want to say? If you are describing to someone how your day went, do you not have to think and look for each word you want to get out? If you are saying to yourself no, then you know that language too well: it is neatly filed in your mind's cabinet. It is the person who only dabbles in another language or one that has not used their other tongue for a long time that I am referring to: someone who has to really think hard to find the proper words to portray their thoughts.
Now imagine being plopped in a world where all the people speak this other language: having a one-on-one conversation. If the person knows your ability and is willing to accommodate you, the conversation is pretty easy. Now imagine you are talking to a stranger. Not that easy is it – to hold a conversation that is. Now picture talking in a group of people where the conversation is flowing freely. When do you break in to command the floor? Will you get the first sentence out clear enough to hold their attention? Will you fumble for words to the point that someone cuts you off and then you are left out, relegated to being just a listener?
I am going to up the ante. Try talking to a group of people and there in the crowd are a couple of beautiful people of the opposite sex. You would not think that this would bring out any emotions that would hinder your speech, but now it does. Let's throw in another variable: let's make it so it physically hurts to talk. What the heck. While we are raising the stakes, let's raise them. It is later in the day, you have been talking all day long and now it is evening. You have had your fill of speech for the day and now you have tiredness and the physical ache to contend with. You just want to go home, lock the door and hang a sign on the door knob that reads, "Do not disturb; talking done."
There are many, many more scenarios that I could add, but I think I will only add one more. It can be best described in this way. Did you ever overdo it one day and drink one too many coffees: the physical tension, or edginess that it brings? Not the paranoid type edginess, but the physical edginess. The type that makes everything in your mind speed up, your muscles want to tense up, your fingers clench and you are left felling overloaded--you just want to sprint down the road, hallway, or where ever you are, with hope this would help. Now picture every day you wake up with the physical edginess, or tension, that a minimum five cups of coffee would bring. Some days it is more – a lot more – but it is never less: and this, without even taking a sip of a caffeinated beverage. Another way to describe it would be trying to talk while someone is holding a gun to your head: ready to shoot if you slip up. Can you imagine what you would be going through if this were the case?
I will leave it there. Think of all the variables I have mentioned. Do you now take speech for granted?
A while back, I awoke from an extremely long sleep. For the longest time, speech was nearly impossible. I don't really remember this time period: I only have snapshot memories of it. But I do know now: English, my only language, has become my second language.
BIAPH Support and Services
Caregivers, Young Adult and Adult Survivors Support Groups
Our Caregivers, Young Adult Survivor and Adult Survivor Support Groups continue to meet monthly, on the third Wednesday at 7 p.m. Meetings are held at the Ontario March of Dimes office, 2227 South Millway, Suite 100, in Mississauga (Erin Mills Parkway and Burnhamthorpe Rd is the closest intersection). New members are always welcome!
Respite Care Program
BIAPH's Respite Care Program provides services to families who are primary caregivers to individuals with an acquired brain injury. The program is funded by the Yuri Mutiger Memorial Respite Care Fund. In 2009, the proceeds from the 6th annual Golf4Yuri tournament raised $14,000 for the Respite Care Fund. If you or a family member are in need of respite care, contact the BIAPH office.
Peer Support
In partnership with the Ontario Brain Injury Association, the Peer Support Mentoring Program connects an individual who is a "veteran" of a life experience involving acquired brain injury (the "Mentor") with a "Partner" who is coping with a similar ABI-related situation and is in need of support from a knowledgeable friend. Both Mentors and Partners can be survivors, unpaid caregivers or family members. The role of the Mentor is to provide support, share information and resources with their Partners.
Mentor/Partner matches are based on similar experiences and/or demographics and personal interests. Most of the mentoring is conducted over the telephone (some by e-mail), making it possible for anyone in Ontario to participate. All Mentors receive training before being matched with Partners through the generous support of the program's development sponsors (Gluckstein & Associates, Henderson Structured Settlements and Sibley & Associates). If you are interested in participating in this program, as either a Mentor or Partner, please contact the BIAPH office.
Education and Awareness
What is an Acquired Brain Injury?
Definition: Damage to the brain, which occurs after birth, as a result of a traumatic or non-traumatic event and is not related to a congenital or a degenerative disease and can result in temporary, prolonged or permanent impairments in cognitive, emotional, behavioural or physical functioning.
An Acquired Brain Injury is not:
- A degenerative condition like Parkinsons Disease, Alzheimers Disease, Huntingtons Disease or Multiple Sclerosis (MS)
- A congenital condition like Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS), prenatal illness, perinatal hypoxia.
What is a Traumatic Brain Injury?
Definition: Damage to the brain, which occurs after birth, as a result of an external force (i.e. fall, motor vehicle crash, assault).
Report from Ontario Brain Injury Association Advisory Council (OAC)
The Ontario Brain Injury Association Advisory Council undertakes collaborative initiatives and exchanges information among brain injury associations throughout Ontario in order to enhance the quality of community based support to people living with the effects of acquired brain injury. Here is their February 2101 report.
Across The Province OBIA Advisory Council (OAC), February 2010
The OAC held its first meeting for 2010 on January 23. At this meeting, participants heard from Mark Blumberg about the legal requirements for charities. Mark is a lawyer who specializes in Charity Law, and came to us through the Charity Law Information Program (CLIP) at Capacity Builders. Though this topic can be dry, Mark kept our interest with his thorough knowledge and sense of humor. Information about CLIP is available at http://www.capacitybuilders.ca/clip.
OAC representatives reviewed the Committees of OAC and have created a provincial Awareness Committee, which will create our key messages for awareness campaigns in the community to help make us more effective at reaching the public. Other OAC Committees include:
Standards – monitors the affiliation process for local associations.
Resources – working on the creation of information resources for stakeholders.
Showcase – creates opportunities for survivors to showcase their artistic talents.
The OAC celebrated the success of the 2009 conference in Niagara Falls, and began to turn its attention to preliminary planning for 2011. Based on the sell out attendance at last year's conference and the great satisfaction with the venue, OAC recommended to the OBIA Board that the 2011 conference be held on Niagara Falls again. All local associations will have opportunities to participate in planning, promoting and volunteering at the conference. The OBIA board approved this recommendation at the board meeting on January 24.
At the meeting, representatives learned that John Kumpf will be retiring from his position of Executive Director on September 6, 2010. Over the past twelve years John's passion in bringing education, awareness and support to those living with the effects of brain injury has profoundly impacted survivors, family members and professionals alike. John's leadership and dedication will be sorely missed. The board is currently in the process of recruiting a new Executive Director. Applications are being accepted from within the organization as well as from external applicants. You can find out more by contacting your local association or OBIA.
Help Support BIAPH
You can support BIAPH in a number of ways
- Become a member of the Community Support Network. For one low membership fee, you will become a member of BIAPH and the Ontario Brain Injury Association. This dual membership will help provide a stronger voice for people living with acquired brain injuries as well as develop and produce supportive province-wide programs.
- Making a personal or corporate donation.
- We are looking for volunteers for committees to help with various BIAPH events.
For more information, visit our website or contact the BIAPH office.
We welcome your suggestions for future editions of Pathways. Please e-mail or fax your ideas to the BIAPH office
Have a wonderful spring, and keep safe!!!!
BIAPH would like to acknowledge the generous sponsorship of our newsletter by:
