Students Have a Blast and Find Opportunities at Family Jamboree

On Saturday, May 11th, 2024, ADAPT held its first Family Jamboree Event! The jamboree, which was designed to introduce parents of past or graduating preschool students to ADAPT’s services and to each other, was hosted at ADAPT’s Brooklyn Children’s Program from 11 AM to 2 PM.

In total, over 172 parents, family members and children attended. We were also fortunate to have numerous volunteers including students from Brooklyn Tech High School as well as interns supporting ADAPT Staff during the event.

Parents enjoyed sharing stories, laughter, and advice with each other as their kids got to mingle and explore the kid friendly space at our Brooklyn Children’s Program. The school was set up with various activities throughout the building and newly renovated backyard, including a sensory water table, sand tables, miniature basketball, hula hoops, drawing chalk, crafts and a water bubble station . In addition, there was music lunch, snacks, a raffle, a welcome kit with a seed starter kit as well as flyers and an information table that provided supports and services to the families in attendance.

For this special Saturday event, ADAPT fully staffed the Samuel Hausman Activities, Resources & Education (SHARE) Center, which loans out informative books, articles, adaptive toys and audio-visual materials about child development to parents of children with Individualized Education Program (IEPs).

According to Wendy De Leon, Director of Housing Assistance Services at ADAPT, the event was a success. “The jamboree went really well,” she said. “The purpose of the event was for families to connect with each other and reconnect with ADAPT services, and that is what happened.”

After socializing, playing games, and enjoying the refreshments, guests were able to explore different kinds of adaptive equipment from TechWorks that are available to families across the city. Parents were able to discuss effective assistive technology options for their children with Peter Pitarresi, Director of TechWorks. that will help their kids to live more independent lives.

ADAPT was able to host this event thanks to a special awards grant given by the New York State Elks Association. The Elks have been a social club around America for more than a century, and the New York State Elks have dedicated themselves to community outreach, with a particular emphasis on children with disabilities and veteran populations. They have awarded grants for adaptive sports, art classes, plays, and more.

We at ADAPT would like to extend a thanks to the NYS Elks Association, our staff and volunteers, and everybody that came to Lawrence and participated . If you are interested in any of ADAPT Community Network’s programs or services, please contact Project Connect at projectconnect@adaptcommunitynetwork.org or 877-827-2666.