Tomorrow's Voices

TOMORROW'S VOICES 2009 ACCOMPLISHMENTS

ON-ISLAND DIAGNOSIS - KENNEDY KRIEGER INSTITUTE ~ DECEMBER 2008/JANUARY 2009
In an effort to facilitate on-island diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), Tomorrow’s Voices has held preliminary discussions with internationally-renowned Kennedy Krieger Institute to determine the feasibility of partnering on such a venture. There is currently a lag time in Bermuda between the suspicion of autism and the official diagnosis of the disorder due to having to facilitate this overseas. Delays from overseas institutions can be as long as 12 months resulting in the delay in implementing much-needed therapy treatment to these children. Although at the preliminary stages of discussions, Tomorrow’s Voices is striving to be able to facilitate annual or biannual visits to Bermuda by diagnostic experts from overseas in order for suspected cases of autism to be confirmed or not.

MINISTRY OF HEALTH SPEECH LANGUAGE PATHOLOGISTS (SLP) ~ JANUARY 2009
Tomorrow’s Voices met with Department of Health Services’ Speech Language Pathologists on January 9th 2009. There
were approximately 25 SLPs present as well as some Occupational Therapists (OTs). Tomorrow’s Voices presented on our
centre, our services, and our therapy methodology. The meeting was quite productive in highlighting the needs and
special considerations when providing services to children with Autism Spectrum Disorders and how Tomorrow’s
Voices’ therapy techniques and strategies can be helpful to SLPs/OTs in working with children with autism

CENTRE ON PHILANTHROPY’S ANNUAL CONFERENCE ~ FEBRUARY 2009
Tomorrow’s Voices Chairman Erica Smith and Board Members Thea Furbert and Carmen Phillips attended the Third
Sector conference in February 2009 and connected with numerous charities and donors. Tomorrow’s Voices was one of the charities nominated and celebrated by the community at the conference dinner. At the dinner, Tomorrow’s Voices gave testimonial and thanked the Lancashire Foundation (our major donor) on its continual support which enables the centre to help families, while in turn parent Vernette DeShield gave a passionate testimonial and thanked Tomorrow’s Voices for providing services to her son which has made a world of difference in her family.

ROYAL GAZETTE SUPPLEMENT ~ MARCH 2009
Tomorrow’s Voices was the main feature in the Royal Gazette’s March/April ‘09 Supplement. The four page spread highlighted
Tomorrow’s Voices’ Staff, our therapy methods, and our services. The supplement was a great vehicle in making the community more aware of our presence and the services we provide to those under the autism spectrum. 30,000 supplements were circulated to the community on March 31st 2009, which was a great way to open up April as Autism Awareness month.

TOMORROW’S VOICES WEBSITE ~ MARCH 2009
Tomorrow’s Voices launched its website (www.tomorrowsvoices.bm) as a one-stop shop for profiling the services
of the centre, the knowledge and experience of our staff, and further information and resources on autism.

EAT SHOP GIVE FUNDRAISER ~ MARCH/APRIL 2009
In March/April 2009 Tomorrow’s Voices launched an exciting new campaign which not only heightened the awareness about autism spectrum disorders and the vital services which Tomorrow’s Voices offers, but also increased consumer traffic through
merchant doors and helped customers to save money.

Eat Shop Give launched on April 1st 2009 as the Premier Shopping and Dining Event in Bermuda. When someone purchased an Eat Shop Give card, they received discounts from over 70 participating merchants. Monies raised from the card sales went directly towards hiring additional Therapists at Tomorrow’s Voices in order to further serve Bermuda’s autism community and specifically serve children on our waiting list. Parents, Volunteers, and Staff from Tomorrow’s Voices were stationed at Eat Shop Give booths throughout the City of Hamilton selling the Eat Shop Give Cards. Participating merchants throughout the island also sold the cards. A total of $21,000 was raised from this creative fundraiser which will be held annually.

WORLD AUTISM AWARENESS DAY ~ APRIL 2009
Tomorrow’s Voices Chairman attended the proclamation by the late Minister of Health, the Hon. Nelson B. A. Bascome, JP, MP, declaring April 2nd 2009 as World Autism Awareness Day. The event was held on the Cabinet Office steps and it was important for us to be present in advocating for autism awareness and support.

AUTISM AWARENESS CAMPAIGN – RETAIL STORE WINDOW DISPLAY ~ APRIL 2009
To highlight April as Autism Awareness Month internationally, Tomorrow’s Voices partnered with a number of retail stores in the City of Hamilton to display Autism Awareness Windows. Gibbon’s Company, Brown & Co., Secrets, and Daisy & Mac all participated by displaying large puzzle pieces in their window displays which highlighted specific characteristics of autism. The window displays were bold and effective providing the community with powerful messages about autism.

ARGUS ANNUAL HEALTH FAIR ~ APRIL 2009
Tomorrow’s Voices hosted a booth at the Argus Annual Health Fair on April 7th, 2009. Tomorrow’s Voices’ Staff and Board Members manned the booth throughout the day and provided the community with information about autism and on Tomorrow’s Voices’ services. The booth featured a number of materials our Therapists use to interact with our clients daily to promote language and other skills. A large number of people came to the booth to ask questions and took away materials to read at home.

TEACHER TALK RADIO PROGRAMME – MAGIC 102.7 ~ APRIL 2009
In April 2009 Tomorrow’s Voices participated in “Teacher Talk”, the Ministry of Education’s educational radio programme hosted by educator Mr. Shannon James. During the radio program we were able to highlight our services as well as provide radio listeners with answers to questions they had on autism spectrum disorders.

L’ALLIANCE FRANCAIS DES BERMUDES AUTISM FILM PRESENTATION ~ APRIL 2009
On April 21st 2009 the L’Alliance Francais des Bermudes presented a very special French documentary (with English subtitles)
entitled “Her name is Sabine” in support of Autism Awareness Month. The movie was an intelligent, moving and beautiful portrait of Sabine, a 38-year-old autistic woman, filmed by her sister, the famous French actress Sandrine Bonnaire over a 25 year period. The film revealed that Sabine's growth and many talents were crushed by improper diagnosis and an inadequate care structure including a tragic five-year stay in a psychiatric hospital – the outcome of which finds Sabine finally with a new lease on life, in a home together with other young people living with similar mental and emotional illnesses. The very intimate film also highlighted an urgent message to society which still does not know how to properly take care of citizens with physical and psychological disabilities. Tomorrow’s Voices attended the screening to highlight and show support for necessary early intervention at an early age in combating autism. We were also grateful to be selected as one of the charities to receive
a donation from L’Alliance Francais des Bermudes.

GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES HEALTH INSURANCE (GEHI) ~ APRIL 2009
A representative from GEHI visited our centre on April 20th 2009 to observe Tomorrow’s Voices provision of therapy and
services and learn how Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA)/Verbal Behavior therapy is helping children with autism. Tomorrow’s Voices explained that in the United States ABA is mandated in law by numerous states to be covered under health insurance as a bona-fide treatment for autism. Tomorrow’s Voices followed up the visit by forwarding various examples of insurance covering ABA therapy in the hopes that GEHI will eventually add this coverage to its insurance benefits.

CAPITAL G ANNUAL GOLF CLASSIC ~ MAY 2009
Tomorrow’s Voices was chosen as the donor charity for the Capital G Annual Golf Classic held at the Mid Ocean Club on May 20th 2009. Tomorrow’s Voices staff provided an information booth at the golf event with interactive and reading materials so that those participating in the event were able to learn about the organisation they were donating to. The event was very successful and many of the event participants visited the table to learn about autism and Tomorrow’s Voices.

ASSOCIATION FOR BEHAVIOR ANALYSIS INTERNATIONAL (ABAI) 35TH ANNUAL CONVENTION ~ MAY 2009
Tomorrow’s Voices staff attended the 2009 ABAI Convention in Phoenix, Arizona from May 21st to 27th 2009. The annual convention was attended by more than 4,000 people from over 40 countries. Convention attendees were professors, researchers, undergraduate and graduate students, teachers, parents, and consultants in the field. Continuing education for psychologists and certified behavior analysts was also available. The annual convention offered a lively venue for discussion and networking for our staff. Because Tomorrow’s Voices values continued annual professional development we believe it is important for our staff to be up-to-date on autism information and education so that we can provide better services for our clients.

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION CONSULTATION ~ JULY 2009
Tomorrow’s Voices met with the Ministry of Education on July 3rd 2009 as we were consulted on the Ministry’s desire to develop a structure to better serve children with Autism Spectrum Disorders in the public education system. This was as a result of a meeting we held with the Ministry back in August 2008 encouraging autism services within the schools. At the conclusion of the meeting we provided the Ministry with a Project Plan for Intervention Classrooms within the Schools supported by Tomorrow’s Voices.

CAPITAL G ANNUAL GIVING BACK RECEPTION ~ JULY 2009
Local charities that were supported in 2009 by Capital G were invited to attend their Second Annual Giving Back Reception held at the Tuckers Point Hotel & Spa on July 9th 2009. Invited Charities were honoured and thanked for their service to the community and were given another opportunity to network with other charities and Capital G executives. Tomorrow’s Voices was one of the honoured Charities thanked at the event by the Chairman of the Board, Mr. Gibbons.

2009 SUMMER PROGRAMME ~ AUGUST 2009
On August 10th 2009 Tomorrow’s Voices launched its first ever Summer Program with the aim of further extending our services and helping more families in Bermuda. We sent invitations to parents of children on our fulltime services wait list to join the Centre for the four-week Summer Program. Two children from our wait list participated in the programme, which was an advantage for those parents that were not able to get full-time services as yet. Our current clients and the additional clients participated in a number of activities and field trips throughout the four-week program, which concluded on September 4th 2009. The summer programme also allowed us to hire and train summer students and volunteers to assist with this programme. This gave them the opportunity to gain great exposure in working with children with autism spectrum disorders and hopefully
will influence their career decisions in the future.

HEALTH CARE PROPOSAL – BERMUDA HEALTH COUNCIL ~ SEPTEMBER 2009
Tomorrow’s Voices submitted a proposal to the Health Care Proposals Committee (HCPC) under the Bermuda Health Council for autism therapy (Applied Behavior Analysis/Verbal Behavior - ABA/VB) to be covered by the Standard Hospital Benefits. Our proposal sought to gain insurance coverage for the assessment of symptoms and behaviours of Autism Spectrum Disorders as
well as coverage for the application and implementation of ABA/VB therapy for persons with a medical diagnosis of ASD. The Committee will review the submission in due course but in the interim a recommendation was made for us to present to the Health Insurers Association of Bermuda (HIAB).

EDUCATORS’ TRAINING ~ SEPTEMBER 2009
In a continued effort to be a resource for schools in the community and to lay a foundation for our clients and other children while they attend public and private schools, Tomorrow’s Voices held two training workshops on September 21st and 22nd 2009 for para-educators, teachers, and support staff of four Government schools. Conducted in collaboration with our renowned international consultants, the Carbone Clinic, approximately 35 persons attended the free training including parents and educators from TN Tatem Middle School, Elliott Primary School, Devonshire Pre-school, and Dame Marjorie Bean Hope Academy. The topics covered were (1) Peering & Manding in the Natural Environment and (2) Dealing with Problem Behaviour. Our Therapists also provided hands-on training in each of the four schools during September 21st to 23rd 2009 along with the
Carbone Clinic.

GROWING TOMORROW’S VOICES ~ SEPTEMBER 2009
In a continuous effort to provide additional resources to the community while offering entry-level opportunities for those interested in careers in autism, Tomorrow’s Voices created an Assistant Therapist Post. This post is geared towards persons who have not achieved a Bachelors Degree as yet, but are enthusiastic about working with children with autism as a career choice. The post offers an opportunity for mentoring and molding those who in the future want to pursue careers working with children under the spectrum. This post also assists in providing more resources to move children off of our waiting list and into the Centre for services. Concurrent with that, Tomorrow’s Voices created 2 Part-Time Therapist Posts which has resulted in the opportunity to grow service provision. Our current staffing provision is 1 Director, 3 Therapists, 2 Part-Time Therapists, and 1 Assistant Therapist.

NEW STAFF TRAINING ~ SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2009
Tomorrow’s Voices hired three new staff members during September and October 2009 and consistent with our mission to ensure the most knowledgeable, competent staff so that children with autism have the best possible outcomes, our new staff undertook extensive training with the Carbone Clinic. Staff members were trained in Bermuda during September 14th to 23rd 2009 and overseas at the Carbone Clinic in New York during October 22nd to 26th 2009.

2010 CENSUS ~ OCTOBER 2009
Tomorrow’s Voices was successful in lobbying the Department of Statistics to include questions on Autism/Pervasive Developmental Disorders on the 2010 Census which will be conducted next year. For the first time ever Bermuda will have the data available to pinpoint the number of children and adults diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorders in our community from the data collected during the 2010 Census. We will now be able to set a benchmark on the number of people in Bermuda under the spectrum. Once all the data has been scanned into the database it will be able to be presented by age group, gender, and race. We will also have a frequency count which will be able to tell us the percentage of the population that has ASD. With this data Tomorrow’s Voices will be in a much better position to lobby for services and support and to develop policies.

2-YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF TOMORROW’S VOICES ~ OCTOBER 2009
Tomorrow’s Voices has been successful in reaching the 2-year milestone in sustaining the centre and the organisation. We feel privileged to have provided over 8500 hours of therapy to children in need to date and to be able to make a real tangible difference for parents. We are also pleased to state that for every $10 that has been donated to the centre we have been able to provide at least 30 minutes of direct therapy to our clients. Tomorrow’s Voices is positioning ourselves to be able to provide resources and services for as long as there is a need.

BERMUDA COLLEGE PRESENTATION ~ NOVEMBER 2009
Tomorrow’s Voices Chairwoman Erica Smith, Board Member Thea Furbert, and Centre Therapists presented to professors and students involved with the Bermuda College/Mount St. Vincent University Child-Youth Studies Programme. Over 25 persons attended the highly interactive session. Tomorrow’s Voices’ goal with the presentation was to educate the participants about autism spectrum disorders and the services the centre provides as well as highlighting that the field of autism therapy is a viable career for Bermudian College students to consider. Preliminary discussions were also held around Tomorrow’s Voices being authorised as a facility for students to complete their required programme practicums.

CEDARBRIDGE ACADEMY WORKSHOP ~ NOVEMBER 2009
On November 13th 2009 Tomorrow’s Voices Board Member Thea Furbert and Centre Therapists held a workshop for teachers, learning supports, and para-educators from CedarBridge Academy. Over 10 educators attended the informative session and were looking for strategies on working with teenagers with autism and developmental delays and specifically how to address behaviours that manifest themselves during adolescent years. The interactive workshop provided the educators with resources and strategies they could take back to their classrooms to implement.

NEW CLIENTS ~ DECEMBER 2009/JANUARY 2010
We ended 2009 and started 2010 on a high note. Through restructuring of our services and the hiring and training of new staff (two of which are Bermudians) we were successful in moving children off our waiting list and into our various in-house therapeutic programmes. Our goal for 2010 is to continue this trend so that all those children with autism or developmental delays that need services can receive them.

Download - Tomorrows Voices 2009 Accomplishments Brochure