Live Michigan Gubernatorial Candidate Twitter Forum Focusing on Early Childhood

Monday, June 21^st from 12p-1p EST

It’s FREE!  Here’s how to attend…

1. Join our discussion by using the #greatstart hashtag in each of your tweets so we can all follow the conversation during the party.

2. 
Follow the Gubernatorial Candidates (@Mike_Cox @george4govenor @Dillon4MI @bouchardforgov)  @greatstart the host so we can respond to the discussion and answer questions.

3.  Click here to use a special Tweet Grid link that has been specifically created for this forum to make following the conversation easier.

4.  If you don’t have a Twitter account, sign up here.

For a free flyer to share or link to click here.

Who can apply for the training? Any parent in Michigan who has a child age birth to 18 years old and has received specialty public services in Michigan for their child. How long is the training session? On day one the training will be held from 1pm – 8pm. On day 2 the training will be held from 9am – 4pm. Parents need to attend both days. Where is the training located? Marquette is July 12-13, 2010 and Oakland County is July 20-21, 2010. Is there childcare provided during the training? No, however we provide reimbursement for money you spend on childcare while at the training. Who pays for the training? There is no cost to parents to attend. Parents also receive a honoraria for their time, mileage reimbursement, and hotel (if they are traveling over 50 miles each way). Meals during the training are provided.

Please apply online using the link on the attached flyer.  For more information contact Sarah Wedepohl at swedepohl@me.com or 248.761.2553.

Visit some of these helpful resources to help make your summertime safer and more enjoyable!

Safe Kids offers advice, tips and additional resources and guides for parents with children of all ages.

Sun Safety for Kids offers videos, recommendations and tips for helping to keep your child safe this summer. A wonderful resource for providers as well!

Kids Health offers tips for how to handle those wasp and bee stings because they do happen and it is good to be prepared!

American Academy of Pediatrics offers many summertime safety tips and links for resources, a wonderful site to visit for an abundance of information!

Keep Kids Healthy is a great resource to help you learn how to keep your child safe this summer from spoiled food. Tips on packing lunches, how long food can stay out and what to look for and avoid.

Enjoy your summer and come on out, give us a call and join us for all of our summer 2010 scheduled events! We’d love if you printed this and posted it at your local playgroup, grocery store or library!

KIWI Magazine has taken a fun new approach to helping parents with parenting by holding free Kiwi University Classes with experts and this month Dr. Susan Bartell, author of The Top 50 Questions Kids Ask, is here to help with these tough questions! And guess what, you’ll get to ask questions too!

Hurry, spaces are limited for this free event!

* June 8 at 10 a.m. EST (Register for this time)

* June 9 at 8 p.m. EST (Register for this time)

Sign up and join us for the whole webinar, and you could win a copy of Dr. Bartell’s book! Ten participants in each session will be randomly selected to receive the book of their choice: The Top 50 Questions Kids Ask: Pre-K through 2nd Grade or The Top 50 Questions Kids Ask: 3rd through 5th Grade.

Great Start

Help your child get ready for kindergarten and let Dora help you!A free simple quiz will create a customized readiness plan for your preschooler. Focusing on early learning skills, social skills, healthy habits and parent involvement.

If you are in need of food or if you know of someone in Charlevoix, Emmet or northern Antrim counties there are several food pantries that may be of some help. For the complete list of food pantries, times and contact information click here.

May 20, 2010

3:00pm to 4:30pm EDT

There is no charge but participants must register to participate in the live webinar.  Please click here to register.

Co-Sponsored by the Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs (AMCHP) and the Association of SIDS and Infant Mortality Programs (ASIP), and in partnership with the National SUID Resource Center, National SUID Program Support Center, National Center for Cultural Competence, and National SUID Project IMPACT.

SPEAKERS:

Henry F. Krous, MD The Role of the Postmortem Evaluation in Research Into SIDS

Dr. Krous is a Professor of Pathology at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, and Director of the San Diego SIDS/SUDC Research Project. Dr. Krous has been involved in SIDS research during the past 30 years, 20 of which have been in collaboration with Dr. Hannah Kinney. His activities also include participation in legislative development and implementation, survivor grief counseling, and public educational speaking. He has served as a consultant to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institute of Child and Human Development in the development of national standards for infant death scene investigation. As a SIDS advocate, he was instrumental in the design and implementation of the California Standardized Autopsy and Death Scene Investigation Protocols for sudden unexpected infant death, and the International Standardized SIDS Autopsy Protocol. Dr. Krous has represented the United States at numerous International SIDS Conferences, such as the Global Strategy Task Force Pathology Working Party for whom he was the Chair of the International Autopsy Protocol Committee.

He is the author or co-author of greater than 300 research publications, abstracts, and chapters, and delivered nearly 200 invited lectures worldwide. He has co-edited with Dr. Roger Byard the book, “Sudden Infant Death Syndrome: Problems, Progress and Possibilities.” Dr. Krous was the recipient of the 1999 Senator Daniel E. Boatwright Award, California’s highest recognition for “extraordinary public service on behalf of Californians touched by SIDS.

Hannah Kinney, MD Serotonergic Deficiencies in SIDS

Professor of Pathology, Harvard Medical School, Associate in Medicine, Department of Pathology, Children’s Hospital Boston. For more than 20 years, Dr. Kinney’s research has been directed at defining the causes of sudden infant death syndrome and her efforts to uncover the mystery behind SIDS have been unyielding. Doctor Kinney and colleagues are testing the idea that SIDS, or a subset of SIDS, is due to a developmental brainstem defect in autonomic and/or respiratory control during sleep. The ultimate goals of the research are to define brainstem abnormalities in living infants and to suggest ways of preventing the abnormalities from leading to sudden infant death.

SIDS research is a “controversial area,” Kinney says. Many experts look to the “triple risk” model proposed by Dr. Kinney to explain it, believing that SIDS results from an underlying vulnerability, a critical developmental period, and an outside stressor. Her research suggests low levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin, and probably other brain chemicals yet to be identified, are what make infants vulnerable. Other experts suspect other vulnerabilities, such as infections. Yet others say SIDS is due simply to suffocation, she says. “We say, yes, some babies will die if they are severely asphyxiated,” But she adds, “what we are saying is in the majority of cases, the babies have an underlying defect that puts them at risk that makes them unable to respond to a stressor, such as having their face compressed [while sleeping on the stomach or becoming tangled in soft bedding].”

April 22, 2010 marks the 40^th Celebration of Earth Day and our Great Start Collaborative believes combating obesity and getting children outdoors to appreciate fresh air, healthy living and activity and our wonderful environment is important. The No Child Left Inside® coalition and the Earth Day Network have teamed up and are working hard to spread the news that children need more outside time, less screen time and obesity is a problem. Click here for outdoor activities and visit Northern Moms for a listing of local events.

Please join ZERO TO THREE for an engaging webinar to release the findings of our latest parent survey, Parenting Infants and Toddlers Today.

Made possible through generous funding from MetLife Foundation, the nationwide survey of more than 1,600 parents of children from birth to 3 years old provides critical new insight on key issues and influences related to how parents make child-rearing decisions.

In this webinar you’ll hear more about:

• The obstacles parents face in nurturing their children’s healthy development
• How the current economic climate is impacting parents’ ability to provide stable child care
• What parents understand about how early experiences affect a child’s development

Don’t miss your chance to learn more about the survey and its findings. SPACE IS LIMITED –
and there is no cost to participate — so register now!

Families in Charlevoix & Emmet Counties

Download a FREE PDF version by clicking HERE.

Educational Services/Preschool

Charlevoix-Emmet ISD                                              547-9947

* Early On         *Hearing, Speech & Developmental Screenings

*Special Education   *Even Start   *Great Parents/Great Start

* Be-Four Programs     *Education for School Age Parents

Early Head Start (prenatal-3 years)                  1-800-443-5518

Head Start (NMCAA)                                       1-800-443-5518

Tuition-free preschool programs       347-9070 1-800-443-5518

Little Traverse Bay Bands Head Start                         539-8325

Kids Club Preschool @East Jordan Elementary School 536-7564

Great Start                                                                  582-8070

Maternal and Child Health Services

Health Department of Northwest Michigan      1-800-432-4121

*Immunizations     *Newborn Home Visits                             * W.I.C.

*Maternal/ Infant Health Program         *Family Planning

*Breast & Cervical Cancer Screening       *Dental Clinic

*Children’s Special Health Care Services

Northern Michigan Regional Hospital                         487-4900

Community Health Education Center         1-800-248-6777

Childbirth Education Information                         487-4762

Charlevoix Area Hospital                                           547-4024

East Jordan Health Center                                           536-2206

Free Clinic- NMH                                                       487-3600

Boyne City Free Clinic                                                582-6828

Planned Parenthood                                                    347-9692

Pregnancy and Resource Center                                  348-3388

Community Health Center                                          348-9900

Community Services

Great Start Network                                         1-877-866-3714

North Country Community Mental Health       1-800-834-3393

*Respite

* Counseling                               * Family Support Subsidy

Department of Human Services                                  348-1600

Charlevoix/Emmet Counties                        1-800-580-9844

*Medicaid                                *FIP                         *Food Assistance Program

*Child Day Care                                                                      *Child Protection

NW Michigan Community Action Agency       1-800-443-5518

*Food                                      *Shelter                    *Heating

Child Care Connections   (childcare referrals)  1-800-968-4228

MSU Extension

Emmet County 348-1770           Charlevoix County 582-6232

*Children, Youth & Family Education                     *4H

Women’s Resource Center                                         347-0067

*Ed Opportunity Prog.   *Domestic Abuse Program    *Playgroups

*Counseling          *Children’s Learning Center       *Safe Home

Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians              242-1400

Michigan Works!  Employment Needs                       347-5150

Big Brothers Big Sisters of NW Michigan                   946-BIGS

Northern Community Mediation                                 487-1771

Counseling/Crisis Services

Child and Family Services                                          347-4463

Hospice of Little Traverse Bay                                   487-4825

Lutheran Child and Family Service                             439-0821

24 Hour Crisis & Information Line                            347-0082

Women’s Resource Center                                         347-0067

Fair Market Counseling                                              347-6701

3^rd Level Crisis Center                                     1-800-442-7315

Legal Aid                                                         1-888-645-9993

Child Abuse and Neglect    348-1600    After hours:  347-1700

North Country Community Mental Health       1-800-834-3393

Harbor Hall             Out-patient  347-9880      1-888-880-5511

Shelter Services

Boyne City Housing Commission                               582-6203

Nehemiah Project                                                       347-0363

Women’s Resource Center (Safe House)                    347-0082

Salvation Army                                                          347-3531

Department of Human Services                                  348-1600

Charlevoix/Emmet Counties                           1-800-580-9844

Food Assistance

Manna Project                                                            347-8852

Salvation Army                                                          347-3531

NW Michigan Community Action Agency       1-800-443-5518

Health Dept. of NW Michigan (WIC)               1-800-432-4121

Charlevoix Community Food Pantry                          547-9122

East Jordan Family Health Center                               536-2206

(Emergency food pantry)

Local churches

Transportation

Charlevoix County Transit                                         582-6900

Friendship Center                                                       348-3425

The Straits Regional Ride  (Emmet County)     1-866-731-1204

Special Needs

Children’s Special Health Care Services           1-800-359-3722

Easter Seals Society of Michigan                     1-800-292-2729

National Organization of Rare Disorders          1-800-999-6673

Michigan Protection & Advocacy Service        1-800-288-5923

Family Support Network of Michigan              1-800-359-3722

Citizens Alliance to Uphold Special Ed.           1-800-221-9105

MI Alliance for Families (free disability info)  1-800-552-4821

March of Dimes                                             1-800-968-DIME

Supplemental Security Income (SSI)                1-800-772-1213

Early On Information                                    1-800-EARLYON

The Arc Michigan                                            1-800-292-7851

This Early On bookmark is made available through a grant by Great Start,

Michigan Department of Education, Part C of IDEA and by

Early On Northwest Coordinating Council

(231) 547-9947

For local human services links:  www.char-em-hscb.org

February 2010