Each quarter, JMF likes to take the time to update our followers and supporters on each of our five programs. We have a lot of exciting things coming our way in 2020, so don’t forget to check back in every three months, and see how JMF is serving children of ALL abilities in central Indiana! For now, keep reading for our winter 2020 program update:
disABILITY Awareness:
For the first semester of the 2019-2020 school year, JMF disABILITY Awareness staff implemented programming in nineteen schools across central Indiana. For the spring 2020 semester, JMF will implement in an additional twenty-one schools! Of those twenty-one schools, eight are new partnerships for JMF. Below is a list of the schools who will be including disABILITY Awareness for the first time:
- Geist Elementary
- Willow Lake Elementary
- International School of Indiana
- The Orchard School
- William Penn School 49
- Louis B. Russell School 48
- James Russell Lowell 51
- James A. Garfield 31
If you’d like to volunteer for the disABILITY Awareness program, please reach out to Program Manager, Chelsea McCloskey at: cmccloskey@josephmaley.org
If you are interested in bringing disABILITY Awareness to a school near you, please contact our Director of Programs, Julie Friedman at: juliefriedman@josephmaley.org
Joseph Maley Fitness
Joseph Maley Fitness spent December in zen, with four adaptive yoga sessions held at the Enrichment Center. Now the program is ramping up for the beginning of winter, with adaptive swimming sessions in January and February.
Through May, Joseph Maley Fitness will offer the following sports:
- Adaptive Swimming (January – February)
- Adaptive Basketball (March)
- Adaptive Easter Egg Hunt (April)
- Spring Adaptive Swimming (May)
If you are interested in registering your child for one of our upcoming sports please contact Joseph Maley Fitness Coordinator, Haley Grooms at: haley@josephmaley.org
NEEDS: Joseph Maley Fitness is looking for volunteers! We need volunteers in order to provide children of ALL abilities in central Indiana the opportunity to learn and play these sports, and to meet them individually at their level and their needs. If you would like to volunteer to be a mentor (ages 16 and above), please contact Haley Grooms at the above email address.
Joseph Maley Family Support
Joseph Maley Family Support held a Sibs Camp Winter Preview Day on January 3. This one-day event was open to children, in grades first through twelfth, who have a sibling with a disability. Sibs Campers engaged with one another, participated in camp-activities, and had fun!
Sibs Camp Winter Preview Day both served as a reunion for Sibs Summer Camp participants, and as a welcome for children and families who may be interested in participating in Sibs Summer Camp 2020. This year’s camp will be June 15-19, with registration opening on Feb. 1.
Joseph Maley Family Support also welcomed a new staff member in 2020. Gracie Poynter now serves as the Joseph Maley Family Support Associate. If you have any questions about the program, please contact Gracie at: gracie@josephmaley.org
HOPE
In this previous quarter, JMF’s HOPE program continued its partnership with Managed Health Services (MHS) Indiana, by performing Joseph Maley Friends puppet skits for anti-bullying assemblies at two schools.
Additionally, HOPE continues to hold speaker nights at schools across central Indiana, where health professionals share their expertise on stress, anxiety, and mental health with students and parents.
In the upcoming quarter, HOPE will be implementing programming in three new schools, and is continuing to expand its list of program partners.
If you’d like to bring HOPE programming to your school, please contact our Director of Programs, Julie Friedman at: juliefriedman@josephmaley.org
Joseph Maley Friends
JMF is excited to announce that Joseph Maley Friends will be training a new puppet troupe for performances in the spring! Eighth-grade students from CFI 27 will be trained this winter, and will begin performing for schools within the Indianapolis Public School (IPS) system this spring.
Puppeteers from CFI 27 will learn skits for disABILITY Awareness and HOPE.
The Joseph Maley Foundation is excited to continue our partnership with IPS, and bring programming to more IPS schools in 2020 and beyond.
