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NO VEMBER/DECEM B ER 2014
 FEAT B ENEFIT G OLF
TOURNAMENT ................ 5
 THANKFUL ................. 4
 P ARENT COACHES ...... 6
FEATfocus
FAMILIES FOR EARLY AUTISM TREATMENT
Dedicated to Effective Treatment for all Children and Adults with Autism
FEAT WALK Sparks ‘Courage Smiles’
Walk together, not alone was the overall
theme of FEAT WALK 2014 and it captured the resilient spirit of FEAT Families.
During the kick-off rally, FEAT President
Nancy Fellmeth and veteran FEAT Parent
John Volinsky welcomed more than 450
participants, supporters, and volunteers who
had worked hard to raise critically needed
funds for FEAT and to WALK in support of
FEAT’s work with local families. “It’s what
we do,” said Nancy, “We help each other.”
John spoke passionately about the many
ways FEAT has encouraged and guided his
family on their 18 year journey with autism.
“Our son Caleb just turned 18, and FEAT
provided the instruction manual for my
wife, Laura, and I,” he said. “We are deeply
grateful to Nancy and FEAT parent coaches
for their many volunteer hours of support on
Caleb’s behalf. Living with autism is challenging, and it is impossible to walk this
journey alone.”
Nancy, who for 20 years with FEAT has
shared the knowledge she has garnered
raising her son, Chris, 22, encouraged walkers to purposively connect with each other.
“It is so important and so valuable when a
FEAT parent who is discovering the pitfalls
and challenges of walking the autism path
turns to walk next to a parent whose child
has just received a diagnosis, or turns to walk
next to a long time FEAT parent who is facing a new challenge.” Nancy said parents also
learn together with special training seminars,
monthly Family Resource Meetings, and with
individual Volunteer Parent Coaches.
“You may not realize that FEAT also works
in the background,” she continued, “FEAT
walks the halls of the Legislature and recently
played a pivotal part changing the law that
gives everyone, including people on MediCal,
access to ABA (Applied Behavior Analysis
Treatment). FEAT walks the halls of schools,
making sure your child gets an appropriate,
best outcome autism program that includes
Page 2
FEAT Walk continued from page one
ABA treatment; and each victory influences
and improves everyone’s program. In fact,
FEAT will walk into any meeting that will
preserve your right to have the type of ABA
program your child needs and the services
they deserve. What we have in FEAT is
something absolutely precious, that’s why
we urge you to reach out and share the
wealth of information you have to keep
FEAT’s mission strong.”
What we have in FEAT
is something absolutely
precious...keep FEAT’s
mission strong.
FEAT WALK Chair, Nannette Henderson
said the event was a great success, exceeding the goal of $35,000. She reported that
317 participants and 44 teams raised funds
online, and 22 Sponsors and Underwriters
donated over $9,500 to make the first annual
event possible. “FEAT greatly appreciates
the generous support of our sponsors and inkind donors that has allowed us to host a
successful event but most importantly a new
community event that engages our FEAT
families.” said Nannette, “We are encouraged and excited to expand the event and
make it even more fun next year!”
As more than 60 volunteers wrapped up the
event, FEAT Parent Natalie Cooper said, “It
was a great day! The kids loved the bounce
houses, face painting, visor decorating,
pumpkin painting, games, eating, and just
being able to relax with other families having fun together. The road that we are on is
not one that I would have chosen, but I have
met some of the most amazing people because of autism. I believe that we are in a
better place on our journey because of the
100% FREE services FEAT provides and I
will be forever grateful.”
FEAT Parent Kelly Goodwin (Team Goodwin) said FEAT Walk sparked courage. “It
was phenomenal!”
Keep FEAT strong, make your
year end donation at feat.org
Save the date!
2015 FEAT WALK
Saturday September 26
Maidu Community Park
FEAT WALK 2014—Top 15 Teams
Team Chris—3 Point King
a feat for F.E.A.T
Team Goodwin
Hender's Hoofers
Raring to go for Ryan
Team Wasylkiw
Oh the Places We'll Go!
Team Caleb Volinsky
Team CVAP
Josiah's Team
Team Leo
Team D
Team Yoder
TEAM VP
Xavier's Ya-Ya's & Heroes
$2,540
$2,244
$1,885
$1,850
$1,850
$1,360
$1,160
$1,000
$775
$710
$675
$625
$595
$500
$485
Nancy Fellmeth
Mark Herbers
Kelly Goodwin
Matthew Henderson
Ryan Hayes
Ben Wasylkiw
Natalie Cooper
Johanna Wonderly
Pilar Garofalo
Marisol Clark
Leonardo Vota
Sue Samuel
Julie Yoder
Deborah Panboon
Linda Brown
John Volinsky and son, Caleb, 18
Page 3
F AMILIES FOR E ARLY A UTISM T REATMENT
Thank You FEAT WALK 2014 Sponsors, Underwriters and Donors!
PLATINUM SPONSORS
CVAP—Central Valley Autism Project
Law Office of Roberta Savage
Ruderman & Knox LLP
SILVER SPONSORS
AST-Autism Spectrum Therapies
Community Cares Foundation
Vestidd Law Office of Michael Pearce
GOLD SPONSORS
Bishops Pumpkin Farm
Building Blocks
Genovese Burford & Brothers
Revolutions Naturopathic
Therapeutic Pathways-Kendall Centers
UNDERWRITERS
Carroll Burdick LLP
Weissmann Consulting
BCA-Barnett Cox & Associates
Bayside Church
Rachel Christine Photography
FEAT WALK DONORS
Katherine Adsetts
Cristina Aguilar
Raul Alcala
Cary Allison
Monica Alvarez
Julie Ambauen
Acacia Ambauen
Johanna Anderson
Marlene Angeli
Maninder Atwal
Diane Bamforth
Caroline Bamforth
Kevin Banderas
Prasanna Bavirisetty
Marty Beater
Lydia Belaski
Tasha Bergman
Kathleen Berry
Arlene Billups
Anders Bjork
Samantha Born
Donna Bostwick
Raymond Brennan
Carmen Brennan
Kim Brown
Piper Brown
Terri Brown
Linda Brown
James Bryant
Jane Bucher
Magdalena Burgos
Jennifer Busbee
Dana Callison
Angelina Caluma
Raymond Canny
Lisa Cardenas
Patricia Carillo
John & Bonnie Carriger
Charlaine Case
Angela Castro
Gabriela Cervantes
Richard Cervamtes
Nikhil Chand
Rachel Christine
Kimberly Christensen
Carol Christiani
Barbara Christiani
Marisol Clark
Sue Coffin
Darilyn Cole
Terri Conte
Robert Contino
Lynn Cooper
Natalie Cooper
Joseph Coppola
Elizabeth Covello
Patty Couse-Baker
Jeannette Couzens
Dorothy Cowley
Charley Cross
Meghan Daley
Greta D'Amico
Adele Deason
Trudy DeFelice
Sean & Violet Del Conte
Tonja Del Gatto
Carole D'Elia
Kenji Dinwiddle
Phillip Ditto
Meranda Ditto
Bruce Dolder
Dick & Ann Donnelly
Beatriz Henriquez-LeCam
Kathryn Downie
Mark & Deja Herbers
Christina Droubay
Rosa Hernandez Preciado
Elizabeth Duenas
Antoniette Hildan
Stephanie Duncan
Julia Himovitz
Linda Dutra
Cyndi Hogan
Ron Edens
Reese & Donna Holcomb
Ellen Eggers
Nicole Holmes
Marjan Elahi
Megan Hoogstad
Mondonna Etemad
Shelby Hoogstad
Eddie & Ann Fagin
C H Huggett
Robert Falk
Lisa Hughes
Tracy Falk
Janelle Ingle
Melanie Fameli
Malathy Jagnanathan
Richard Farber
Michael Jalone
Nancy Fellmeth
Lisa Jeffers
Chris Fellmeth
Julie Jeffreys
Brian Fellmeth
Keith Johnson
Karen Fernandez
Stephanie Johnston
Deniece Figueroa
Deb & Terry Jones
Caroline Firman
Bruce Kaminski
Debbie Fletcher
Rebecca Kane
Therese Florian
Greg Kasner
David Fogle
Lisa Kawano
Tracy Fong
Lindsay Kawano
Ralph Frattura
Brendan Kenny
Clare Friedman
Laura Kenny
Richard Fu
Andrew Kerch
Bernard & Sandra Gagain
Heidi Ketcherside
Janice Gage
Vinay Khare
Jeff Galbreth
Sri Kodali
Jennifer Galvez
Josh Krage
Vijay Gangaram
Edie Lambert
Sandra Garcia
Josh & Karen Lancaster
Kathy Garcia
David & Janelle Lewis
Angel Garcia
Patricia Lira
Zia Garofalo
Priscilla Luckow
Elizabeth Gibson
Rozanne Luna
Peggy Gilpatric
Michael Luna
Michael Gilpatric
Cheryl Mabry Scott
Terrence Gladney
Suzanne MacPerson
Maria Glashoff
Diane Malcolm
Monique Goldfried
Joey Maloney
Marian Gomez
Lynn Margherita
Paula Gonzales
Angela Marks
Kevin Gonzales
Connie Mariscal
Judith Goodwin
Megan Mashore
Kelly Goodwin
John Matthias
Dolph Gotelli
Tara May
Frances Green
Amanda McCullough
Patricia Green
Sandra McGinnis
Kara Green
Delia McGrath
Joan Grootveld
Caroline McIntire
Julie Gugerty
Michael McIntire
Alicia Gusman
Jamie McKay
Katrina Gustafson
John & Melanie McKenna
John Hall
Linda McNutty
Helen Hall
Cheri Meadows
Carol Hansen
Leanee Medina Estrada
Keith Hansen
Evelyn Meletlidis
Sue Happ
Penny Meletlidis
Jamie Harris
Isabella Menjiva
Ronald Hartman
Mercury General Corporation
Rick & Laura Hayes
Karen Messing
Victoria Hayes
Molly Mester
Ellin Abbott Hayes
Joyce Michelson
Nancy Heath
Denyce Miller
Robert Hector
Janelle Montoya
Craig Heiser
Elizabeth Morgan
Brian Henderson
Stephanie Mosley
Diane Henderson
Katherine
Mufich or lost personal items.
FEAT is not responsible
for damaged
James Henderson
Andrea Mundy
Nannette Henderson
Marcelino Navarro
FUNTIVITY SPONSORS
A+Dental Care-Personalized Dental Care
Bishops Pumpkin Farm
Community Cares Foundation
Lindamood Bell Processes
Comprehensive Autism Related Education
Center for Autism & Related Disorders
RAFFLE
Lisa Marshik & Deborah Young
Joshua & Elissa Neil
Stacie Nelson
Dayna Neuse
Anna Nolan
Chris Norris
Jeannette O'Briend
Matthew Oliver
Yvette Ong
Chris Orenchuck
Kurt Ozdaglar
Ross PalermAo
Daniel & Deborah Panboon
Narendra Pathipati
Sridevi Pathipati
Heather Paulsen
Rolando Pelayo
Letisia Perez
Toni Perricone
Erik Petersen
Marcia Platt
Chris Ponseti
Carole Pope
Eric & Jennifer Post
Lisa Potts
Michele Raithel
Brian Ralli
Helen Ramirez
Mike & Andy Ramirez
Claudette Ramirez
Carlos Ramirez
Jo Anne Ramirez
Rebecca Ramirez
Kathleen Ramirez
Kelly Ramirez
Carmen Ramirez-Brooks
Rhonda Ransdell
Erlyne Raquel
Mercedes Rasmussen
Sivakumar Reddy
Chakradher Reddy
Seana Reilly
Eileen Rendahl
Kevin Riggs
Vicki Riherd
Laura Rios
Gregory Rogalski
Susan Ronan
Sandy Ronan
Bill Rood
Terrie Rosario
Michael Rosiello
Michelle Rowley Reed
Jenny Rubert
Karen Samuel
Thomas Samuel
David Samuel
Sue Samuel
Michael Sanson
Emily Santone
Mary Ellen Sherrer
Patty & Andrew Schetter
Raymond Schnorr
Claudia Schoder-Marques
Rick & Eric Schoenborn
Kristin Schoenborn
Sally Schreiber
Terry & Yuki Schulte
Sandra Scott
Patrick Seaver
Maureen Sergent
Jennifer Shaw
Jane Sheppard
Jason Sherman
Bahareh Shivazad
Raj Shoan
Nancy Short
Tasha Singh
Marie Smith
Kelly Soulies
Barbara Souza
Garrick & Monica Spencer
Ellen Spring
Srini Srinivasan
Andrew Statezny
Kristy Stewart
Jessica Stiles
Michelle Stowell
Norman & Terri Stinson
Angela Stinson
Judy Strehle
Daniel Sundukos
Anthony Sunseri
Erin Sunseri
Angela Sutherland
Sai Tatikunta
Ethan Thomas
Ellen Thompson
Jocelyn Thompson
Brandon & Kara Trammel
Amanda Trimble
Michelle Tu
Kathleen Updegraff
Margaret Utt
Debbie Valdez
Mistie Van Noort
Susan Vanderby
Jessica Varma
Sudhakar Rani Deepthi Vatti
Renganathan Vedhantham
Ellen Vernon
John & Laura Volinsky
Betty Volkert
Eric Vota
Paul Vota
Kathleen Vota
Sebastian & Robin Vota
Merrilee Vuscovich
Rachel Wall
Patricia Ward
Lisa Ward
Craig Ward
Carolyn Washington
Blaine Wasylkiw
Andrea Weber
Andy Weber
Lori Welch
Amy & Andrew Wenzel
Beverly Wharff
Carole Whit
Jennifer Whitmire
Julia Wickham
Jane Wiesenburger
Lynne Weissman
Jocelyn & Aidan Wiltson
Richard Wise
Laura Wong
Tricia Wood
Patty Woodyard
Dianna & Xavier Ximenez
Sanjay Yadlapalli
William & Carol Yeates
Kirsten Yeates
Joe Yoder
Julie Yoder
Mila Zea
Colleen Zolmer
Page 4
Page 4
F AMILIES FOR E ARLY A UTISM T REATMENT
FEAT relies on individual and community
donations to continue providing
education, advocacy, and support to
thousands of families in the Northern
California autism community. We are
thankful for the ongoing Employee Giving
through the following United Way
agencies:
Thank You for Giving
G e n e r o u s l y t o FEAT
This Holiday Season
Every dime you donate to FEAT
through individual giving, matching
donation programs or a giving
campaign goes directly to helping a
child with autism and their family.
Please take a moment to make your
end of the year, tax deductible
donation online at feat.org
or mail a check to FEAT PO Box
255722 Sacramento CA 95865
The Families of FEAT
are thankful for
FEAT families thank the following
corporations who match the gifts
of their generous employees when
they donate to FEAT:
Adobe Offline
Macy’s
Liberty Mutual
Microsoft
Workday, Inc.
Invite your employer to match
your donations to FEAT!
Our Promise:
California State Employees
Giving at Work
FEAT thanks the Employees and Retirees
of the following corporations for their
monthly donations to support FEAT’s
mission to provide Education, Advocacy
and Support for the Northern California
autism community:
AT&T
Allstate
Blue Shield
Costco
Ebay
FedEx
FEAT is very grateful to be invited each
HP
year to represent our families at the
IBM
annual Pig Bowl—a benefit football game
Intel
Corporation
between local law enforcement and fire
fighter members. We are thankful to the
Kaiser Permanente
Pig Bowl Board for their generous 2014
Liberty Mutual
FEAT donation of $3,000! Join the fun:
Macy's
MGM Resorts
41st Annual Pig B owl
Nationwide
P res ents Guns & Hoses 12
Principal Financial
S aturd ay, Jan uary 24, 2 01 5
C SUS St adiu m
Umpqua Bank
6 00 0 J Street, Sa cr am ento, C A
UPS
Gat es Open 1 1a m
Wells
Fargo
P re- gam e Noon
FEAT is not responsible for damaged or lost personal items.
K i ck O ff 1pm
United Way of San Joaquin County
United Way of the Bay Area
United Way California Capital Region
United Way of Greater Philadelphia
and Southern New Jersey
United Way of New York
United Way of King County
Arrowhead United Way
Yuba Sutter United Way
Raley’s ~ Nob Hill ~ Bel Air
It’s easy to help FEAT every time
you shop—Sign up for Raley’s
Something Extra Credit Program
online at Raleys.com and
designate 100% Extra Credit to
Families for Early Autism
Treatment. OR ask your local
stores about their Scrip Programs.
FEAT Families Thank
Bishops Pumpkin Farm
for dedicating the 2014 Bishop’s
Corn Maze to FEAT and sharing
half of the proceeds from
one September weekend
with a generous donation of
$2,351
Can you find the FEAT boy in the MAZE?
F AMILIES FOR E ARLY A UTISM T REATMENT
FEAT Benefit Golf Tournament Raises $25,000
On a beautiful Fall day, golf brought together foursomes representing over 30 corporations and FEAT
families and volunteers for the third annual FEAT Benefit Golf Tournament. Organized by FEAT Parent,
Terry Schulte, the event has forged meaningful relationships and autism awareness for participants.
“FEAT is so grateful for Terry and his colleagues,” says Nancy Fellmeth, FEAT President, “They come
back every year because they care about the challenges our families face.”
FEAT THANKS OUR TOURNAMENT TEAM & HOLE SPONSORS!
AEGION
ANVIL CORP
AZZ LIGHTING SYSTEMS
BRINDERSON
CALICHE
DC SOLAR
JPR SYSTEMS
MATRIX
MMR
NUSTAR ENERGY
PCI
PETROCHEM
PHILLIPS 66
PFT
PMI
PONDER
SAFWAY
SAN JOAQUIN ELECTRIC
TANCO
TELFER GEOSYNTHETICS
UNICO
Page 5
Tournament Volunteers
CHAIR—TERRY SCHULTE, NUSTAR ENERGY
Kathleen Berry, FEAT
Karen Bothe, FEAT
Ken Deak, NuStar Energy
Tim Donaldson, NuStar Energy
Harvey Duran, Phillips 66
Nancy Fellmeth, FEAT
David Frank, NuStar Energy
Jenn Greaves, FEAT
Shannon Greer, FEAT
Leticia Holbert, Nustar Energy
Maria Ilomin, Safway
Winnie Kane, NuStar Energy
Julie Kinder, Brinderson
David Lewis, FEAT
Janelle Lewis, FEAT
Lisa Marshik, FEAT
Jack McCann, Nustar Energy
Stewart McIntire, FEAT
Barbara McSherry, Brinderson
Michael Poirier, NuStar Energy
Patsy Querantes, NuStar Energy
Stephan Rosen, NuStar Energy
Amy Rowland, Land Home Financial
Yuko Schulte, FEAT
Curtis Shorts, Nustar Energy
Edward Vegas, NuStar Energy
Margala Woods, FEAT
Deborah Young, FEAT
Family Resource Meeting
I Make Movies When I Read
How Good Readers Comprehend
Terri Mehl - Center Director
Lindamood Bell Learning Processes ~ Sacramento
Wednesday November 19 7-9pm
Shriners Hospital Auditorium ~ Free Parking
2425 Stockton Blvd Sacramento 95817
FEAT’S HAPPY
and delightful
HOLIDAY PARTY
LEARN about the program and treatment methods of Lindamood Bell
for the improvement of reading comprehension to help students reach
their full potential. Enjoy a lively discussion of how good readers can
comprehend. "We will take a look at the research and programs that
make a dramatic improvement for children and adults struggling with
comprehension." Terri Mehl
FEAT Parents and Caregivers are cordially invited to celebrate the
holidays with festive beverages and appetizers on Thursday,
December 11th from 6:30pm to 9:00pm at St. Anthony Parish
Visit feat.org and sign up for FEAT NEWS
Memorial Center, 660 Florin Road, Sacramento, CA 95831.
(Newsletter Management Tab)
Find us on Facebook:
Please RSVP by December 4th to [email protected]
FEAT-Families for Early Autism Treatment
facebook.com/groups/FEATSAC
FEAT is not responsible for damaged or lostor
personal
items.
call 916.303.7405.
Looking forward to seeing you there!
Families for Early Autism Treatment—FEAT
PO BOX 255722
Sacramento, CA 95865-5722
Remember FEAT
this Holiday Season
N OVEMBER 19
F AMILY R ESOURCE M EETING
D ECEMBER 11
H OLIDAY P ARTY
www.feat.org
FEAT Parent Coaching Corner
As we near the holiday season and
reflect on the year’s accomplishments, it’s clear that all of us at
FEAT have much to be thankful
for. With every successful gain at
the legislative level and each new
Family Resource Meeting and
social event, FEAT continues to
positively impact the lives of individuals with autism and their families. This year, FEAT was directly
involved in ensuring that individuals with MediCal insurance coverage would be able to receive
applied behavior analysis (ABA);
that families could access appropriate services through their Regional Centers; and that parents
and family members continue to
receive ongoing education and
opportunities to network in the
community.
While education and advocacy are
vital aspects of FEAT’s mission, in
many ways, direct support to families is at the heart of our organization. When a family faces their
journey into autism for the first
time or experiences difficulties in
the IEP process, they contact
FEAT. When a family worries
about a child struggling to make
progress in the classroom, or a
therapeutic support is denied, they
contact FEAT. When a new challenge arises or a family contemplates a move to a new school
district, they contact FEAT.
FEAT provides one-to-one, direct
support for families through its
Volunteer Parent Coaching Services. With a simple phone call or
email, any FEAT parent or family
member who has questions or
wants support can access other
parents who have “been there, done
that” and receive focused guidance
on their particular situation.
FEAT’s Volunteer Parent Coaches
come from all walks of life and
have diverse personal and professional experiences, yet all are
parents who have children with
autism, just like you. Many FEAT
coaches are the true trailblazers of
our community and have long advocated for children with autism
and other disabilities. So when you
contact FEAT for help, you are
connecting with other parents who
have a deep-seated personal mission to help other families dealing
with autism thrive.
Each time FEAT volunteer parent
coaches connect with a family in
our community, it enriches their
own lives and the organization as a
whole. Without the direct input and
involvement of each family, FEAT
would not be what it is today. As a
FEAT family, you are FEAT.
Thank you for sharing your challenges, successes, and insights
with FEAT. It is an honor and a
privilege to work together.
By Robin Vota,
FEAT Volunteer Parent Coach
To connect with a FEAT Parent Coach
send an email to [email protected]
A UTISM
AFFECTS
ONE IN 50
CHILDREN
Make a Holiday tax
deductible donation
online at feat.org or
mail your check to
FEAT PO Box 255722
Sacramento CA 95865
Thank You!