Family Voices topic at Kiwanis meeting

Don Caine introduced Donene Fiest, executive director of Family Voices of North Dakota, and Jolene Sjostrom, a board member of the organization, to speak at last weeks’ Kiwanis Club meeting.

FVND is a national organization and the local chapter has been around since 2001. North Dakota Parent to Parent provides support, information, resources, training and leadership opportunities for families who have children and youth with disabilities. Parents are linked with like disabilities for emotional support. All board members are parents with disabilities.

Sjostrom spoke of getting good ideas and support from other parents who had been or were going through the same trials. The organization has helped 4,000 families across the state this past year, 700 users for the first time and 100 in the Jamestown community. Nearly 20,000 children in the state of North Dakota have a chronic condition of some kind; more than 40 percent of these children have a health condition that limits their play and school activities. The role of the organization is to assure that families receive informational and emotional support in caring for their child.

Tim Burchill led the meeting with 22 members attending. Don and Sharon Caine led the group singing and Don Caine also collected “Happy Dollars” for Camp Rokiwan. Burchill reported that the Valley City Kiwanis members were going to the Anne Carlsen Center to have a meeting on July 18 and asked the Jamestown group if they would like to join them. The consensus was that the club would join them.

A blood drive will be held on July 11 in the afternoon and July 12 in the morning at Ave Maria Village. A sign-up sheet for calling and working during the event will be passed around at the next meeting.

Claudia Jacobson is the chairperson for the July 9 noon luncheon meeting at the Lantern Room. Her program will be on the Ave Maria Chapel Project.

Tags: community, life, clubs