Resources for Parents
|
Adjust Text Size |
All of the sites we have included offer a vast array of information for the parents of special needs children. These sites offer parenting techniques, family programs, resources, information, and more. Several of these sites also have links to a variety of support groups as well.
We have not included support groups on this page of resources for parents. If you are looking for support groups, you will find them on our Support Groups page. Other than that, please browse through the special needs parenting sites below.
Should you still have a question, please send us an email and we will offer all the assistance we can. To send us an email, Click here, or on the Contact Us button to the left, or scroll to the bottom of this page, and click on the address box.
Here are the links...
Skagit County Mental Health Court
Skagit County Mental Health Court is a collaborative, problem-solving court designed to promote public safety and reduce recidivism among mentally ill offenders through an intensive program of evaluation, treatment and frequent monitoring of compliance.
North Sound Mental Health Administration
NSMHA is the Regional Service Network (RSN) for the North Sound area, and since they are the funders for most programs in our areas, they can probably direct you to the service provider you are looking for. The North Sound area includes Island, Skagit, Snohomish, San Juan, and Whatcom counties. TRIP is the parent organization for North Sound, and works closely with NSMHA on a variety of projects.
NAMI Washington
NAMI stands for the National Alliance on Mental Illness, and they are dedicated to support, education and advocacy by and for those with mental illness and their families and friends. NAMI is a national alliance, and the Skagit area chapter has just launched their website, and is busy setting up anew facility in the Mount Vernon area. They offer support groups, trainings and workshops, and host several activities during the year. Visit their site for the latest information.
Skagit Parent to Parent
P2P provides a variety of resources for parents of special needs children including: Advocacy, Health, Resource Guides, Information, Education, and Support. They also do trainings, support groups, provide a lending library, and community resources.
Secret Harbor and Foster Care
Secret Harbor is a local non-profit agency which provides residential foster care placement and mental health counseling for children in Anacortes, Burlington, and Cypress Island.
Skagit Discovery Program
The Skagit Discovery program serves elementary, middle, and high school students experiencing significant social, emotional, and behavioral difficulties. The goal is to have students develop sufficient internal discipline so that little external reinforcement is required. In addition to the behavior management system, social and emotional goals are taught daily. Specific instruction enables students to learn problem solving, decision-making, and social skills. In addition, there is a strong emphasis upon academic instruction that is individually determined.
The Whatcom Dream
The Whatcom Dream is a community based non-profit organization providing financial literacy classes throughout Whatcom county. They begin by offering free financial skills courses in the communities they serve. The participants of each 12-week course develop into a "nucleus of transformers" with the skills and abilities to become more self-sufficient and to orchestrate sustainable change in their neighborhood. The result is community-driven transformation, rather than development driven by external agencies. For more info contact Trudy at 360-319-3759
Washington Assistive Technology Foundation
WATF provides low interest loans for all types of assistive devices (wheelchairs, hearing aids, computers, just to name a few) and services as well as business equipment for home-based employment. It serves individuals of all ages with disabilities of all types, including seniors with age related hearing, vision and mobility limitations. Interest rates range from 4.75 percent to 6 percent for loans up to $10,000. The program is funded through two U.S. Department of Education grants totaling $1.8 million and donations from private individuals and foundations such as the Paul Allen Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Seattle Foundation. Contact Executive Director, Frances Pennell or Program Director, Andrea Dimond or by phone at 206-328-5116.
SAMHSA’s Resource Center to Address Discrimination and Stigma
With a new library of more than 600 resources, the improved ADS Center website features information and advice to help individuals and organizations counter discrimination and stigma associated with mental illness.
The centerpiece of the redesigned Web site is a still growing online library of research articles, brochures, fact sheets, toolkits and other resource items. Content is now organized by both topic and audience to help users quickly navigate to items that meet their needs.
Materials and playback information for more than 25 teleconference training events are archived on the site, and an interactive map showcases programs around the country that aim to reduce discrimination and stigma associated with mental illness.
Adoptive Parents Network
Adoptive Parents Network is a site offering resources and support to adoptive and pre-adoptive families adopting through the state foster system, privately, internationally, as a step-parent or as a kinship adoptive placement.
Washington Dads (WADADS)
Their mission is to support fathers, male caregivers, and their families raising children with emotional, behavioral, and mental health concerns. They have several chapters, including South Sound, Yakima, Kennewick, King County, and of course the North Sound. They offer Dads retreat weekends, twice a year, where Dads raising special needs children can network and support one another.
National Empowerment Center
The mission of the National Empowerment Center Inc. is to carry a message of recovery, empowerment, hope and healing to people who have been labeled with mental illness. We carry that message with authority because they are a consumer/survivor/expatient-run organization and each of us is living a personal journey of recovery and empowerment. Whether on the back ward of a state mental institution or working as an executive in a corporation, they want people who are mental health consumers/survivors/expatients to know there is a place to turn to in order to receive the information they might need in order to regain control over their lives and the resources that affect their lives.
Focus Adolescent Services
Focus/Family Help in Washington provides information and resources to empower individuals to help their teens and heal their families. Through education, self-awareness, self-help, and personal responsibility, families can rebuild their relationships and reconnect in positive and loving ways. The free availability of the Focus website reflects their commitment to disseminate knowledge to the widest possible audience.
Changes Parent Support Network
They provide support, education, and service to parents of special needs children struggling with teens and adolescents who are engaging in self-destructive or acting-out behaviors such as truancy and failing grades, defiant, rebellious or out-of-control behavior, running away, drug and alcohol abuse, illegal activities, aggressive and/or addictive behaviors and attempted suicide.
Consumer Voices Are Born
Consumer Voices Are Born (CVAB) is a nonprofit mental health agency run and operated by individuals with mental illness. They are a community of people supporting one another as they promote respect, responsible citizenry and journey towards personal recovery. They are a supportive community and know through experience that each journey is personal and no one should go alone. You will find many opportunities (groups, classes, activities, volunteer opportunities) through CVAB for your journey of recovery.
Network of Care for Behavioral Health and Community Services, Clark County
Regardless of where you begin your search for assistance with behavioral-health and community-services issues, the Network of Care (Clark County) helps you find what you need - it helps ensure that there is "No Wrong Door" for those who need services.
Raising Special Kids
This site is ran by a father of four special needs kids, ranging in age from 3 to 15. Judson and I met via the internet, and although he is on the other side of the country, his story is one that is common among special needs families. Judson has some great advice for parents, and his message of hope is inspirational.
Network of Care for Behavioral Health and Community Services, Pierce County
Regardless of where you begin your search for assistance with behavioral-health and community-services issues, the Network of Care (Pierce County) helps you find what you need - it helps ensure that there is "No Wrong Door" for those who need services.
Don't Forget to Sign Up for the TRIP Newsletter
