Joshua, the subject of many blog posts, and driving force behind the building of the Orange Effect Foundation, applied for an internship for next summer. I’m super excited about it, although I think the position is for college students and he is only in high school - but still, take a shot, right? During the application process Joshua had to do several things including write a poem - pictured …
Schools and Parents Don’t Always Agree On the Best Route for Kids: What Can You Do?
In this final post in our series, we ask the experts a really tough question and they do not disappoint with their answers. It is important to note in this post that procedures for diagnosing a child as well as getting help in school may vary by state, or in some cases, even by school district so it’s important to talk to someone local! What can you do when your child's school does not agree …
Being Grateful For the Little Things
We at the Orange Effect Foundation find it easy to be grateful. We have over 100 reasons to be thankful. In 2018, we have funded speech therapy for over 100 children across the United States. We are making a difference. We are grateful to all our sponsors who help make this happen. To show how far the gratitude goes, here is what some of our Orange Effect grant recipient families are thankful …
Is it Ever Too Late For Speech Therapy?
Continuing in our series of blog posts answering some of the FAQ’s we get here at Orange Effect Foundation, we have reached out to our experts today to find out if you are ever too old to start speech therapy. We started the series last month by asking how these amazing professionals can do work with toddlers. We know that not all kids hit their milestones at the same time but our experts were …
Content Marketing World Recap
The first week of September I had the unprecedented honor of being an attendee at the event Content Marketing World. Those who know a bit about my history know that I have worked at the event the first seven years, so being an attendee and not working was definitely a new experience. I had such a wonderful time. I could write an entire blog post about how amazing the event is and how much I love …
Can Technology Really Help With Speech Therapy?
This is our second in a series of asking the professionals for information based on their experience in speech therapy. In the first blog post, we asked them if you can really perform speech therapy with toddlers. In this post we ask a question that I personally get asked a lot. My son was just shy of the major technology boom. Knowing his personality and how easily he adapts to electronics, I …
Could I Be The Luckiest Girl In The World? An Autism Story.
The first Monday in August has been a huge day for our family for the past 12 years. It is the day of our annual golf outing fundraiser. It started because our son received early intervention and was starting out in a regular education classroom. At first the goal of the outing was simply to give back, so we paired with the amazing group at Northeast Ohio Easter Seals and all our profits from the …
Speech Therapy for Toddlers? Really?
I’m no expert in speech therapy, but because of the work we do here at the Orange Effect Foundation, I often get asked a lot of questions that I honestly don’t know the answer to! So I took some of the top questions and posed them to the real experts… speech therapists! Their insight is so valuable and I can’t thank them enough for their time to help out! Today’s question is how can you do speech …
Placing Family First
I've been lucky at a lot of things in life. Amazing family, the best group of friends, and really great jobs. I went to college to be a social worker and my first few jobs in that field helped define what I was meant to do. They were both challenging and fulfilling. Then came motherhood. By far my favorite job of all. I love every second of it. Then fate kicked in and I was able to help my …
Dear Moms: Stop Beating Yourself Up
I suspect like many Moms, I get reflective as Mother’s Day approaches. But do I have time to be reflective? Maybe not. I have to make sure that all the Moms and Grandmas and Nanas in our life get cards, and gifts where appropriate. And I have to make sure that we see them that day. Oh, and one is out of town, so maybe send flowers and candy? Should we host dinner? What will be on the menu? If the …
When Everything…Even Getting In Trouble…Is AMAZING!
From my UNscientific research*, about 10% of parents have been told that their child will not be able to do something. Maybe they were told their child can’t play a particular sport due to a past injury, or that their child cannot participate in an academic completion due to a learning disorder or walk without assistance due to a birth defect. Whatever it is, no matter the issue, parents just …
Seeking Balance
February has always been such an interesting month for me. Here in Cleveland it is often the “grayest” month of the year, meaning we don’t get much sunshine! But it is also the month of St. Valentine’s Day! Love is constantly in the air. It makes me reflect on relationships a bit more, including those with my children. What a struggle it is to balance accepting them the way they are with trying …
