No Faxes, Emails Or Scanned Copies Will Be Accepted

Newsletter for May 10, 2012

Editor: Shirley Harshaw

Important: Applications for Family Funding are included with this newsletter, which must be filled out and the original must be returned to us before June 15, 2012.

No faxes, emails or scanned copies will be accepted.

Will be held on Friday June 1, 2012 at the Caboto Club at 6:00 p.m.

for ALL members of Autism Ontario Windsor Essex Chapter.

The meeting will include the annual Treasurer’s Report, a recap of the past year and plans for the new year, Awards and election of the new Chapter Leadership Council.

Awards will be given out to the winners of those nominated for Educator and Support Staff for Catholic, Public, French and Private Schools. Also the RAGADO award, Community Service Award, and Gala Committee member Awards will be given out.

Dinner will be served so please contact the office before May 25th if you are attending.

To follow are the biographies of the people who have submitted their names for nomination of the 2012/2013 Chapter Leadership Council. You will be given a ballot at the meeting and you must check off “Yes” or “No” for each name. Remember you must be a member in good standing in order to vote so please make sure your membership is up to date.

Biographies for Nominees of 2012/2013 Chapter Leadership Council

Cristina Angileri: My name is Cristina Angileri and I was born and raised in Windsor, Ontario. I am the mother of a 16 year old child with Autism Spectrum Disorder – Asperger’s Syndrome. I teach and coordinate in the Autism and Behavioural Science Graduate Certificate Program at St. Clair College.as a Senior Therapist at the Summit Centre for Preschool Children with Autism. I am also still in school pursuing a Master’s Degree of Sciences in Psychology. I intend to spend my career working in the field of Autism which I am very passionate about. In the past 10 years I have attended a multitude of conferences and workshops about Autism. I have been a member of the Autism Society for about 8 and a half years. Starting in 2004 I sat on the AO Leadership council for 6 years. It was a wonderful experience, which I would definitely love to return to. I am interested in helping, volunteering and advocating in any capacity that I can.

Julie Bondy: I am a local Real Estate Sales representative with Manor Windsor Realty Ltd. I have two children, Hunter who is 10 and has been diagnosed with PDD-NOS, Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not otherwise Specified, and is under the Autism Spectrum, and my daughter Lauren as you all know as Lolo who is a “normal” functioning child of 6. I graduated from the University of Windsor in 1997 with an Honours Bachelor of Commerce Degree, specializing in marketing. Excelling in sales, I have been a local Realtor since 2003 and have been the Top saleswoman at Manor Realty on a consistent basis.
I contributed as a part of the Gala Committee for this year’s Give Your Heart to Autism focusing on the silent auction. I have been the Secretary on the Chapter Leadership Council for the two years and I enjoy being part of our team that helps our local children and adults with Autism, and would like to submit my biography to run again this year. I love to help give back to the Autism community for all the support Hunter has received from our awesome network here in Windsor. With many contacts and a special understanding of marketing and fundraising, I feel that I can be a great asset to our local chapter here in Windsor.

Livia Congi: If there are images in this attachment, they will not be displayed. Download the original attachment

My name is Livia Congi and I have been happily married for over 10 years. I am a proud parent of four wonderful children, with the oldest having autism. In the past I have volunteered for the Peel or York region chapters of Autism Ontario and recently served as the Treasurer of the Autism Ontario Windsor Chapter. In addition I have worked in IBI programs and completed the Autism and Behavioural Science Program. It would be an honour to be elected again as a member of the leadership council and be given the opportunity to help support families in the community while promoting autism awareness.

Izzy Faraci: Hello my name is Izzy Faraci. I have a beautiful wife named Violet and two awesome boys named Stefan who is 17 and has autism and our youngest Jason who is 12. I have been a Certified Financial Planner for the past 22 years. Currently I am the Senior Financial Advisor at Manulife. In the past year I have served as the Vice President of Autism Ontario Windsor Essex Chapter, and as the for two years previous to that as Vice President. I have been the Co-Chair of the Gala Committee for the past 12 years and my wife has been very actively involved on this committee also. I have assisted in the planning of the various activities and fundraisers we have throughout the year. I have many contacts in the community which can be beneficial at times. I would like to submit my name to run again this year so I can continue to make a difference in the lives of individuals with Autism in this community.

Rita Miceli My name is Rita Miceli and I was born and raised in Windsor, Ontario. I am very happily married to my husband John Miceli and I am a proud mother of four children, one of whom has autism. I attended the University of Windsor, where I earned a Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Education degree. I am also a specialist in French and have Special Education qualifications. I am currently an educator for the Greater Essex County District School Board where I have been for the past 19 years. Also, I am presently co-cordinator and instructor in the Autism and Behavioural Science Graduate program at St. Clair College. I was a past member of the Executive Committee, and a member at large for ASO (Windsor/Essex Chapter) for a number of years. I have been honoured to serve as co-president and vice president of Autism Ontario. I have also been a co-chair for the Give your Heart to Autism Gala and have served on this committee for the past ten years. My daughter and I began the AO Calendar fund raising initiative, which has proven to be a successful project. My husband and I along with Bill Spadafora and Izzy Faraci are on the Hands On Committee, which is committed to providing opportunities for all persons with Autism in a training and working capacity. It has been a pleasure to be a part of the team at our Windsor/Essex Chapter. Together, I hope we can work to address the concerns families faced with autism have to endure, and hope to make an impact on a greater quality of life for our Autism community. I hope to continue raising funds, awareness and advocating for persons with autism. I would like to serve our AO members by continuing to be a part of the Chapter Leadership Council for the upcoming year. Thank you.

Kruno Ozvald: Hello Everyone! My name is Kruno Ozvald and I have been a member of AO for about 11 years now. I am married to Anja and have 3 wonderful kids, Adam, Paige and Kyle, who was diagnosed with severe autism 11 years ago. I spent one year on the Executive Board in 2001/02 and at the time found it difficult to put in all the energy that I wanted to. I decided instead to run a golf tournament to raise awareness about this epidemic and to also raise some money to help out our families through the Summer Support program. I have been running the Oz for Autism Golf Tournament for 8 years now and have donated all of our proceeds to our local chapter over that time. Since retiring about two years ago, I have found time now to get a little more involved and help out this committee who over the last few years has been doing a wonderful job raising awareness, putting our kids into wonderful working programs and raising large amounts of money to help us all out.

Trudy Richards: Hello, My name is Trudy Richards. I graduated from the University of Windsor in 1994 with a Bachelor in Psychology. I then moved to B.C. and worked for the Ministry for Children and Families in several capacities. One of the positions I held was as a caseworker to families with children with severe disabilities. I moved back to Windsor in 2004 and began employment with the City of Windsor as a Case worker with the Ontario Works program, (Social Assistance). I am currently working toward my Masters in Social Work at the University of Windsor part time. My husband and I are raising our grandson Kyle, who is 7 ½ years old and was identified as being on the Autism Spectrum. I am currently a voting member on the board of directors with the Learning Disabilities Association of Ontario in Windsor. I would like to be considered for the Chapter Leadership Council because this is a cause that is near and dear to my heart, having a child on the spectrum has educated me on the vast amount of need in our community for services and advocacy groups.

Bill Spadafora: Hello my name is Bill Spadafora and I am putting my name forth to be considered for the 2012-2013 CLC . I have been married to my wife Fran for almost 20 years and we have two beautiful children, Jessica & Christopher. I am employed by Windsor Essex Catholic District School Board and work in the Payroll/Business Dept. I have been a member of the CLC since 2006 and I am currently serving as Co-President. In the previous years I have held the positions of Treasurer and as the Events Co-ordinator. For the past 7 years I have organized the annual Summer Picnic and Christmas Party along with my fellow CLC members and have enjoyed doing these events. I have also participated in many of the other fundraising events for Autism Ontario Windsor Essex Chapter. My wife and I have also served on the Gala Committee for the past 10 years, in which I served as co-chair for the Give your Heart to Autism Gala 2007-2012 and have been fully responsible for the volunteers and silent auction for the past 6 years. Although we do not have children with autism, we have many friends that do and have seen how it affects their everyday lives and that has inspired me to help out in any way that I can. I have enjoyed my time with Autism Ontario Windsor Essex and have felt that I have been an asset and support to this Chapter. I would like to submit my name to run for the Chapter Leadership Council in the 2012/2013 year.

Support Workers - Are you looking for a worker or a therapist – Did you know that Rita Miceli and Cristina Angileri teach the Autism Behavioural & Sciences Program at St. Clair College and may be able to connect you with a person who has ABA knowledge and training. For more info. email Rita at or or if you prefer contact Shirley at the office, as there are many resumes on file with people who are eager to work with persons with Autism.

CALENDARS – 2012 – If you still have money outstanding for calendars, please submit it to the office.

Any money that is owed will be deducted from your family funding.

We are working on our 2013 calendar, which will be for 16-months. We are requesting that you send pictures by email Shirley at or drop them off at the office. Each picture must be accompanied by a photograph waiver form which is on our website or can be emailed directly to you or picked up at the office. We are also looking for any drawings done by our children, sayings, quotes or educational sites that you would like to see included in the calendar. We will need this info before May 31, 2012

SPONSORSHIP for Calendars - We are also accepting sponsorships for our upcoming 2012-2013 calendar. You can advertise your business and/or services by making a donation for $150.00. This is a great opportunity to get your name out to the community and generate some business.

GOLF TOURNAMENT

WHERE: BELLEVIEW GOLF CLUB

WHEN: SUNDAY, JULY 15 At 2:00 p.m.

WHAT: 4-PERSON BEST BALL SCRAMBLE – Shotgun Start

REGISTRATION STARTS AT 12:30 p.m.

COST: $100.00 PER PLAYER includes: 18 HOLES OF GOLF, POWER CART, FANTASTIC STEAK DINNER, DRIVING AND PUTTING CONTESTS, CLOSEST TO THE PIN CONTEST, GIFT BAG

PLEASE HAVE YOUR MONEY IN BY JULY 1st, 2012

IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN PLAYING, SPONSORING A HOLE OR JUST WISH TO HELP OUT PLEASE CONTACT: KRUNO OZVALD 519-979-3840 OR E-MAIL AT

We are looking for pretty much everything, players, sponsors, volunteers, gift donors and money donors and anything else that you can think of to help us raise some money for kids and families affected by Autism.

All About Autism – June 13th Communication, Socialization and Play – Cost: FREE

The beginning steps on how to work with your child and improve their communication and social skills through play. Location: ASI Library, 3600 Curry Ave. Time: 6:30 p.m.

Sexuality & You - Saturday June 2 at the Fogolar Furlan Club - 9:00 am – 3:00 pm Cost: FREE

Talking to your kids in a meaningful and consistent way about sexuality.

Contact Andrea (226)787-0333 or for more information on these workshops

ART EXHIBIT & INFORMATION SESSION

Early Learning Professionals, Resource Consultants, Supervisors and Operators,

Ontario Early Years Professionals, JK/SK Teachers, Community organizations working in the Autism Spectrum Disorder field, Parents, Caregivers and family members whose children are on the ASD spectrum are also welcome to attend.

Artism: The Art of Autism Exhibition & Art Sale

Wednesday May 16, 2012 at Willistead Manor 1899 Niagara St., Windsor, ON

4:00 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. - Morning Billiard Library - Opening Reception with Kerri Bowers

Appetizers & Beverages ($10 tickets for purchase) also purchase your copy of the “Artism” book