we just added PURE Ministries to our "Links" page under church ministries for special needs.  PURE Ministries will be at our church in Portland, Texas tomorrow and we thought we would share.  


You can click on the name above to go to their website and here is the actual link www.pure-ministries.com and facebook at 
https://www.facebook.com/PureMinistriesZW and twitter  twitter.com/ThePureMinProj


They have several excellent resources listed on their site and promote respite and inclusion of those with disabilities.  


Please share with your friends and tell your church about them!


Robert Hutchins

I received the below email from the Autism Action Network.  Please share, re-tweet, etc.  


Thanks!


Robert Hutchins



It started: DSM5 used to revoke autism diagnosis      More Info

Share your story to stop the DSM5      As many of us expected, the new definition of “autism” laid out in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, Fifth Edition (DSM5) is being used to deny services and educational placements to people with autism.  We are receiving more and more reports from around the US (Buffalo, Dallas, Utica, etc.) of schools, Medicaid providers, insurance companies and local government service providers using the DSM5 to deny services to people who have an autism spectrum disorder.

     If you are facing difficulties or the loss of services as a result of the DSM5 please let us know. Please contact us at jgilmore@autismactionnetwork.org with your stories. Your stories will be a crucial component in stopping the DSM5.

     All the studies on how the DSM5 will affect people with autism have shown huge numbers will lose their diagnosis, their services, Medicaid and educational placement along with it. One study from the Child Study Center at Yale University showed a 55% reduction, including 30% of those categorized as low-functioning.

     We have had bills introduced in several states including New York, New Jersey and Connecticut to require the continued use of the DSM4 and other diagnostic tools such as the ICD. We are working on getting bills introduced in other states. Illinois has already passed legislation prohibiting the use of the DSM5 to deny services. And we are working to prevent the federal government from using the DSM5.

     The DSM5 discards the labels of “Asperger syndrome” and “pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS)” Schools and insurance companies and Medicaid providers are using these changes to tell people who have an Asperger’s or PDD-NOS diagnosis that they no longer have “autism” and are losing insurance coverage, placements in special education and other services.

     The DSM5 is wrapped in controversy. The federal National Institute of Mental Health considers the DSM5 so flawed that they will not spend any research dollars on studies that use it.  We do not have to put up with this.

     Please share this message with friends and family and please post to Facebook and other social networks. 

http://capwiz.com/a-champ/issues/alert/?alertid=62949381&queueid=[capwiz:queue_id]

Since we have done away with our non profit and have decided to just use our website to share info and tell our story, so that it might help you or someone else, we have also decided to use our site as a platform for others as well.  

If you would like to share your story about your experiences dealing with autism, please let us know and we would be happy to post it to our blog.  If you have information that might help others, please send it to us and we will share it in our links section.  This is about community and we would like to help you get your information out there for others to benefit from.  

Robert Hutchins

The SPD Foundation has new seminars for this fall!  Click on the link below to see what they are offering.
Fall Line-Up of Workshops