Transcript

Hello.  My name is Nicki Wilson.  I’m the Director of Respite Care and Family Support Services at Easter Seals.  One of the programs that I work most closely with is Megan’s House.  It’s a respite home for children who have disabilities.  Many children that come and use the service come from families that can’t always afford to pay for respite care.  And respite care is often a very under-funded service and not always viewed as a priority.  In fact, sometimes service providers view it as a luxury.  We at Easter Seals, however, feel that families should always have access to respite care because the benefits are so astonishing to the families. 

So coming up in the summer we’re going to be having an opportunity for the community to get involved in Megan’s House and to help us with our fundraising.  One of the ways that they can do that is by participating in a duathlon that we have coming up, called the Heels & Wheels Duathlon.  So what people can do is they can actually run, bike, run, and one CA is going to partner with us in this and we have a few sponsors that are coming on, so that families can get involved, the local athletes can get involved.  And not only can they raise money for Easter Seals Megan’s House, but they can also be active in the community. 

This will be the second year that we’ve done it.  It’s going to be held September 29^th at the YMCA Sports Park.  The run portion will include a two-mile run around the track with an 11-mile bike out Gillionville Road, so it’s a great course.  This will be USAC-sanctioned for serious athletes that really want to add points to all their results so that they can train for future events.  And so it’s just really a neat and unique event coming to Albany.  This actually is an event that we’ve done in Waycross for three years and that event in Waycross will be held August 25^th at Laura S. Walker State Park.  And this year we are expanding it to include a tri, so there will also be a swim portion there.

However, if a person does not want to participate in an event like this but still would like to support Megan’s House, we’re always taking donations, both financial and time.  People often don’t think about ways that they can volunteer at Megan’s House, but we do have opportunities for people to volunteer and actually engage themselves in the lives of these children and families.  So if people are interested in getting involved, either to donate or to volunteer their time, they can contact me at southerngeorgia.easterseals.com or on the phone at 229-439-7061.  Thank you.

Press Release

The 2nd annual Heels & Wheels Duathlon to benefit the Easter Seals’ Megan’s House will be Saturday, September 29th at the Albany Area YMCA Sports Park.  Registration is now open online at http://drcsports.com/Race_Applications/2012/heels_n_wheels_albany_2012.pdf.  

Megan’s House is a respite home for children ages 0-17 who have developmental disabilities, autism, or are medically fragile. Direct care is provided by qualified, experienced Direct Support Professionals and individualized care plans are developed by the Registered Nurse on staff. Megan's House is available for a minimum of 24 hours to a maximum of two weeks per visit and may serve up to two children at one time. Services are provided in three locations: Albany, Valdosta, and Waycross. The cost to the family is determined by a sliding fee scale and scholarships are available. 

This event is brought to Albany through support from CVS Caremark, The Columbus Organization, Women’s Health Professionals, The Albany Area YMCA, Reeves Construction Co., PMF, and Ga BioMass.  For additional information contact Nicki Wilson at 229-439-7061 or via email at [email protected].