The Helping House

Autism Awareness Month 2011

2011-03-31T21:11:00.002-05:00

Get your calendars out! There is a lot going on this month with The Helping House!

April 12th, 5 - 7 pm, Open House

Come join us for our 3rd Annual Community-Wide Open House. Visit with staff, kids and parents of THH and enjoy some light refreshments. See what we have been up to this year, and what our plans are for the future!

April 30th, 10 - 2 pm, Family KiteFest

Bring your family out to the Family KiteFest at AL Mangham Airport in Nacogdoches. Admission is free to this fun event and there is plenty to do - food, games, face painting, and KITES! WhatAKite from Lufkin is coming to display amazing giant kites. Kids can build their own kites and compete in kite races. It promises to be a fun and memorable day! Come support a great cause!

Hope to see you this month!

Early Christmas

2010-12-11T10:55:00.001-06:00

Today is our first annual Saturday School for Christmas! We have had a great time decorating cookies, visiting with Santa, playing with playdoh, and just enjoying each other's company! I don't even think the kids know its not a regular school day, and their parents have a whole day to shop and do whatever they need to do to get ready for Christmas!

Feliz Navidad from The Helping House!

Busy Month

2009-11-05T08:14:00.003-06:00

November is already looking very busy for us at The Helping House. Here are some things to put on your calendar:

November 10th - Potty Training Seminar

This is a free workshop for parents and educators with basic potty training strategies and ideas. Training Certificates are available upon request for childcare providers. This seminar will be held from 6 to 7pm in the Early Childhood Research Center at SFA, room 214. Childcare is available.

November 17th - The Helping House Meet and Greet

Come join us on Tuesday, November 17th and learn about Parent Support Services we offer through The Helping House. These are consultant services that range from home behavior plans to feeding. We are excited to share this menu of support in addition to our full- and part-time school services. Dinner is provided by The Smokehouse, and the event will be from 6 to 8. Parents only please, and RSVP to Heather (936-553-8780) because space is limited.

We hope to see you at these events! It will be fun for us and informative for you!

THH in the news!

2009-08-06T20:42:00.001-05:00

Some special training for some special guys!

When it rains...

2009-07-06T11:35:00.003-05:00

It seems I took a hiatus from posting here while the sky took a hiatus from raining. And, since yesterday we had a small (much needed) flood in Nacogdoches, I'll commemorate that with some news about The Helping House.

We are halfway done with our first Summer Clinic. Session I was a learning experience for all involved, but we have had such a good time doing it! Maria and I have been blessed to have been joined by four lovely young women who are so eager to work with our kids and make a difference! With a staff of six and eight students enrolled, we had a great ratio to target some specific areas of need, and overall we have been successful!

Our students spend their days in structured group and social activities that are tailored to their individual needs. Some students work on sitting still at circle time, while others are focusing on using appropriate communication with their peers.

We have also been working on fundraising to help with scholarships for the Fall. If you know of anyone who might be interested in helping us in ANY way (volunteerism, grant writing, grant FINDING, etc) please pass on our information.

This summer has been a blessing! We can't wait to see what Summer II brings - hopefully more rain!

The Helping House in the News!

2009-05-05T12:46:00.002-05:00

Check us out!

Thanks!

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We had an awesome turn out for Open House - over fifty people came by! Thanks to everyone who helped and participated. Your support means so much!

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It is our privilege to invite you to attend

Open House

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

5 pm to 8 pm

The Helping House

919 Jack Lock in Nacogdoches

As our first school year winds down, we have so many reasons to celebrate and be thankful. Please join us for this come-and-go reception to view our facility and learn more about services offered at The Helping House.

For information call 936/371-1536

Gluten Free

2009-04-04T14:02:00.003-05:00

It seems that a significant number of children with autism benefit from dietary interventions, such as the gluten-free/casien-free diet. At The Helping House, our students (and their parents) are encouraged to at least attempt the diet to see if it makes a difference in their behaviors and attention to task. We occasionally have support group meetings for these families as it is challenging to think of removing something as global as "wheat" from your child's diet, especially when he already has a limited palate.

For Autism Awareness Month, I am doing a gluten-free diet for myself. Hopefully it will give me insight and perspective into the challenges that are faced, and maybe there will even be health benefits for me! I am on day four, and it hasn't been near as difficult as I thought it would be!

If you are interested in dietary interventions for your child, or even for yourself, please feel free to contact us for more information.

April

2009-04-01T20:33:00.003-05:00

April is Autism Awareness Month!

We have several events planned, including a benefit garage sale (April 18th) and a community Open House (April 28th).

Please check back for details soon, and spread the word! Be aware!

Famous in a small town

2009-03-11T06:22:00.002-05:00

We are so grateful to Stephanie Oliver and the rest of The Journey staff for putting together a lovely article about The Helping House in this month's issue, as well as focusing on autism resources in our area.

Check the article out (page 20) by going here!

Quilt Raffle

2009-02-06T20:01:00.003-06:00

The ladies of the Nacogdoches Quilters Guild have generously donated a beautiful, handmade quilt for a raffle to benefit The Helping House. The quilt is pictured above and is titled "Love Lives Here."

Tickets are $1 each, or six for $5. The drawing will be held on Monday, February 16th. If you are interested in purchasing tickets, please call 936/371-1536!

Upcoming Events

2008-12-25T20:27:00.003-06:00

Merry Christmas! I have neglected the blog a little bit lately, and I am taking a moment of peace to fill you in on some things happening:

Starting in January, we will be offering an Extended Learning Program from 3pm to 6pm in the afternoon, Monday through Friday. The program is available to children age 3 to 11 with developmental delays. Our focus will be social skills, communication skills, and leisure activities. If you are interested or know someone who is, please contact us (936/371-1536)!

We will be having another meeting of the GFCF Diet Support group in January, on a date to be announced.

At the beginning of February, we will be having a bowling fund raiser. The date is not scheduled yet, but if you are interested in supporting us or helping out in any way, let us know!

If you are interested in feeding therapy for your child because of limited dietary selections or sensory defensiveness, please consider setting up a feeding program for your child at The Helping House. Times and dates are flexible and the program is based on the individual's needs. Contact us for details.

Check back again soon for more information!

Fundamentos de autismo

2008-11-13T19:54:00.003-06:00

This is a little late, but we hosted a Spanish-language informational meeting on Tuesday night for parents and professionals who are interested in knowing more about autism. We had a great turnout, and a lot of good conversation.

Mark your calendars, or pass the information on to someone might want to know:

We are hosting a Spanish-language Parent Support group on Saturday, December 20th at 11 am. The main topic will be the gluten-free/casien-free diet, but other topics will be addressed as needed.

If you have questions, please call 936-371-1536.

New territory

2008-10-19T21:39:00.003-05:00

Gluten-free, casein-free diets are becoming an important intervention to try with children with autism. We at The Helping House just want to offer support to those parents who are undertaking this change, and provide information when needed.

We will be hosting a Parent Discussion/Support Group on Monday, October 27th from 5:30 to 7:30 at The Helping House. This will be primarily for parents who want more information on how to do the GF/CF diet, and for parents who have already done it to share their knowledge of products and strategies. Childcare will be provided.

For more information and to RSVP, please call 936/371-1536.

Listen up!

2008-10-13T20:21:00.003-05:00

We recently started a new therapy at The Helping House, under the capable direction of our private speech therapist. It is called The Listening Program.

The kids spend time each day working on fine motor tasks, like puzzles, or sensory tasks, like play-doh, and listed to a prescribed set of tracks on a cd. They seem to enjoy the music very much, and do not protest the headphones at all. At the very least during their listening therapy time, they are relaxed and happy, but this program seems to offer so much more than that!

This therapy is used to improve auditory processing, which is commonly a deficit in children with autism. There are reports of increased receptive and expressive language, attention, and tolerance of sensory input. I am excited to see how my students change as we use this program - I'll keep you posted!

Its so nice to come in first

2008-09-30T19:35:00.001-05:00

We won! We won! We won!

Thanks to all the voters - my persistent brother especially - and thanks to Maurice's for supporting local charities!

The raising of funds

2008-09-24T16:42:00.000-05:00

Hey! If you are local, go by Maurice's (in the shopping center across from WalMart) and vote for your favorite local charity. (HINT HINT! It should be The Helping House!)

The organization with the most votes wins $500, which will go directly to our students in the form of a scholarship. All you have to do is vote by the 28th! So just do it! Thanks!

Two weeks in...

2008-09-09T16:33:00.002-05:00

We are still here! It has been a wild couple of weeks. The students are getting adjusted to their routines at school, and I am getting adjusted to the students.

We have three great kiddos right now, and everything seems to be going pretty smoothly.

Thanks for your prayers and emails! We are so excited about what is going on here at The Helping House!

To do list

2008-08-23T17:27:00.001-05:00

School supplies? Check.

Lunches bought? Check.

Staff prepared? Um, check?

Stomach virus out of the way so I won't have it on the first day of school? Check.

Can't wait till Monday!

Labor of love

2008-08-13T09:07:00.003-05:00

So, you know how on Trading Spaces, it is always mere seconds before time is up that they slap the final coat of paint on the baseboards?

"Ten more minutes before the Jones's come see their new house! Are we going to be ready? I DON'T KNOW!!!!"

And the viewers are on the edge of their seats waiting...

Well, that is sort of the effect we are going for with The Helping House.

Between the air conditioner installing, electric rewiring, ceiling painting, kitchen re-cabineting, curtain making, driveway laying, landscaping, exterior painting, floor laying, window replacing, sign posting and azalea relocating, we are pretty busy.

But I am sure, by the skin of our very teeth, we will finish by the 25th.

Even if the kids can't touch the baseboards on the first day of school.

Group effort

2008-08-05T20:16:00.003-05:00

We had such a great turnout at our workday, and we got so much done! The front yard is completely relandscaped, a sidewalk was removed, and stepping stones were placed. Flowerbeds were made in the front yard, planted, and mulched. The outside of the house was washed to get ready for painting.

Inside, the bathrooms got scrubbed, ceiling fans got cleaned, curtains were taken down, and the kitchen cabinets were sanded to get ready for painting.

Thank you to all those who stopped by and gave up time on their Saturday: Ronny, DeAnn, Jan, Mitchie, and Judy. Thanks most of all to Eleonore, Glen, Daniel and Manuel who spent the whole day working on The Helping House! We love you and owe you a Zest-E-Burger or two!

I don't have "after" pictures yet, but check back! We'll have some soon!

Come on by!

2008-08-01T06:38:00.003-05:00

We are having a workday on Saturday, August 2nd at 919 Jack Lock in Nacogdoches.

If you are in town, and you can only come for five minutes, GREAT! You have time to wipe a counter or change a lightbulb... just kidding! We really want you to see our new place!

Call if you need directions - 371-1536.

A House for The Helping House

2008-07-30T13:16:00.000-05:00

We secured a location for The Helping House yesterday! We are so excited to be home! Here is a "before" picture, and keep an eye out for the "after" picture. We have a lot of work to do! And if you are so led, call me and and you can come help us!