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REGION 5

CT Down Syndrome Congress (Statewide)

CDSC is a special interest group that advocates for persons with Down syndrome and their families. We are a welcoming and supportive group of over 350 parents, numerous professionals and over 20 advocacy groups statewide. We provide support to our members through our annual convention, by co-sponsoring parent/professional conferences and hosting numerous local and state-wide activities (e.g. picnics, playgroups, mom's night outs, holiday parties, etc.) For contact info and to see our calendar of events, visit our website at http://www.ctdownsyndrome.org.
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Connecticut Family Support Network Northeast Parent Group (Multiple Locations- Region 5)

The Connecticut Family Support Network Northeast Parent Group is a parent support group, currently meeting the first Thursday evening of the month from  6:30-8:30 p.m. Meetings are held at the John Dempsey Center, 376 Pomfret Street in Putnam. There are no age or disability specific requirements to attend the group. The group's philosophy is that all parents and/or caregivers need support and information. Parents are provided with a relaxed atmosphere of caring and acceptance, as well as advocacy, referrals and parent training on a variety of disability related topics.  The goal is to empower families to work with school districts, private providers, state agencies, legislators and within their communities to attain acceptance and a high "quality of life" standard. This group is funded in part, through the Department of Mental Retardation and the Birth-to-Three System. For information on specific meeting locations, or to be added to the group's listserv, please contact Mona Tremblay at 860- 928-6514 or by email at: advocatefor2@yahoo.com or Ann Tetreault at 860- 630-4033 or by email at:  ann.tetreault@ct.gov
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Family Support and Advocacy Group for Children with Behavioral, Emotional and Mental Health Challenges (Wauregan - Region 5)

The Family Support and Advocacy Group for Children with Behavioral, Emotional and Mental Health Challenges meets the first Thursday of every month from 9:30 until 11:00 am at the United Services in Wauregan, CT. For more information on this support group, please contact Lorna Grivois at: 860-537-6125 ext. 101 or by email at: lornagrivois@sbcglobal.net.
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Family Support Network (Statewide)

The Connecticut Family Support Network holds monthly meetings in various areas.    For more information, please contact the following:

 

State Coordinator         Jennifer Carroll     860-657-8180    email:    jtcarroll@cox.net

Northwest Region         Alice Buttwell         860-350-6025    email:    AliceMMBB@aol.com

Southwest Region         Lisa Sheppard      203-556-7317    email:    lnshep@aol.com

Northeast Region          Mona Tremblay     860-928-6514    email:    monamotheroftwins@msn.com

North Central Region    Shelia Harris          860-297-4358    email:    afcamp@sbcglobal.net

Southeast Region          April Dipollina       860-444-6607     email:    dipollina@sbcglobal.net

South Central Region    Tesha Imperati      203-234-3983    email:    teshaimp@aol.com

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Families United for Children's Mental Health Support Groups (Statewide)

Families United for Children's Mental Health conducts support groups throughout the state in the following towns: Bridgeport, Enfield, Groton, Norwich, Plainville, Plainfield, Portland and Wauregan. For information on dates and times in your area, please visit http://ctfamiliesunited.homestead.com/SupportGroups.html, call Lorna Grivois at: 860-537-6125 x101 or email them at: lornagrivois@sbcglobal.net.
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Families United Network Plainfield (Plainfield - Region 5)

The Families United Network Norwich support group meets on the last Wednesday of the month from 6:00 - 8:00 pm at Plainfield Town Hall.   For additional information, please contact Lorna Grivois at Families United for Children's Mental Health at: 860-537-6125, x101 or email her at: lgrivois@familiesunited.org for location and details.
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Families United Network Thompson (Thompson - Region 5)

The Families United Network Thompson support group meets on the second Thursday of the month from 10:30 am until Noon at the Thompson Public Library in Thompson, CT. For additional information, please contact Lorna Grivois at: 860-537-6125, x101 or email her at: lornagrivois@sbcglobal.net or Susan Witkowski at: 860-928-1569.
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The Food Allergy Association of Connecticut (Statewide)

The Food Allergy Association of Connecticut (FAACT) is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to providing education and support to parents of children with  food allergies and increasing public awareness and understanding about food allergies. They promote education and awareness with monthly meetings, guest speakers, special events and a parent support network.  For more information about FAACT, please visit their website at www.faact.org.
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Food Allergy Support Group (Willington - Region 5)

The Food Allergy Support Group of Willington, meets at the Willington Public Library on the first Wednesday of each month, from 7:00 until 8:30 pm. This group is for adults or parents of children with severe, potentially fatal food allergies. For more information please contact Lisa at: 860-429-1722.
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“Friendship” Group (Social skills group) – UCONN (Storrs – Region 5)

The UCONN Psychological Services Clinic is offering "friendship" groups for children on the autism spectrum.  We are currently offering groups for children ages 7-9.  In the future, we may also offer groups for children and adolescents of other ages.  If you would like to be placed on our waitlist, please contact Julie Wolf or Jessica Lord at 860-486-2642.
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National Organization on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (Statewide)

NOFAS Connecticut is a statewide support and advocacy group for parents and caregivers of individuals affected by Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) and Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD). We offer support and information to families and professionals by phone and through support groups. We also offer an email list-serve which is open to parents and professionals, to enhance our efforts in sharing support and information. Our goal is to raise community awareness regarding prevention of FASD and improving the quality of life for those affected. For more information please contact, NOFAS Connecticut at 860-942-4507, or email them at nofasct@yahoo.com. 
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National Spinal Cord Injury Association, CT Chapter (Statewide)

The National Spinal Cord Injury Association provides a variety of support groups to people suffering from spinal cord injuries throughout the state of Connecticut. Our support groups allow individuals the opportunity to discuss a variety of topics with other's that have a spinal cord injury. Support group meetings are held at many area hospitals and independent living centers throughout the state of Connecticut. Support groups are organized and run by NSCIA CT Chapter member volunteers.

For support group locations, dates and times please visit: http://www.sciact.org/services.asp#support.
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SMG~CAN – Selective Mutism Group ~ Childhood Anxiety Network (Colchester – Region 5)

My name is Mrs. Laurie Gorski; I am a mother of a child with selective mutism. I am the Connecticut State Coordinator for the Selective Mutism Group - Childhood Anxiety Network (SMG-CAN), and member of the SMG-CAN Education/Advocacy Committee. We are the largest organization in the world dedicated to research of selective mutism and related childhood anxiety disorders. We offer support and information to parents and professionals dealing with children who have selective mutism and related childhood anxiety disorders. SM children are often misdiagnosed and mismanaged simply because so little is known and so little information is available on SM.  As a mother with a child with selective mutism, I felt alone and I did not know where to go or how to get my daughter help. I then found the SMG-CAN website. We finally found someone who understands exactly what we are going through and how to help our daughter. We felt as if we had a huge weight lifted off of our shoulders.

One of the goals for SMG-CAN is to build a network, in each state, for parents when they need support and information dealing with selective mutism.  We presently have a group meeting in Colchester, CT.  For more information please call Laurie A. Gorski, Parent Advocate, SMG-CAN State of CT Outreach Coordinator at:  860-267-0449.
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Tourette Syndrome Support Group (Pomfret Center - Region 5)

The Pomfret Center Tourette Syndrome Support Group meets at the Pomfret Community School in Pomfret Center, CT. Meeting dates are TBA. For more information or to find out the meeting dates please contact Keri Scheuritzel at: 860-974-2035 or by email at: kscheuritzel@charter.net.
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