2007 – 2008 Speaker Series

(Speakers confirmed for these dates)

 All events are at 7 PM at Highland Community Center
14224 Bel-Red Road, Bellevue Washington

October 18th, 2007 Karen Gaffney

• President of a non-profit organization that is dedicated to championing the journey to full inclusion for people with Down syndrome and other disabilities.  (Karen Gaffney Foundation)
• Graduate of Portland Community College, Portland, OR; attained an Associate of Science degree and a Teacher's Aide Certificate.
• Frequent keynote presenter for the National Down Syndrome Congress, national and state chapters of The Arc, TASH, CEC, Parent to Parent groups as well as other various regional, state, and local Down syndrome support organizations around the country.
• The first person with Down syndrome to complete a relay swim across the English Channel.
• Karen will also discuss her September 2007 swim across Lake Tahoe.

Karen will also speak to UPSIDE, the Down sydrome Support Group in Kitsap County and surrounds, on Friday, October 19, 2007 at 6:30 pm. 
The group meets at Central Kitsap Presbyterian Church, 9300 Nels Nelson Road, Bremerton.  All are welcome.  Questions, call Anne Mullis at (206) 842-9027.

January 24, 2008  Teri Johnson

• Project Manager for O’Neill and Associates, LLC, since 1985.
• Professional focus for the past 20 years has been to contribute to the development of quality employment opportunities for adults with developmental disabilities.
• Under a demonstration grant from the United States Department of Education’s Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, O’Neill and Associates created the first public sector supported employment program in the nation.
• The night's topic is Creating Job Opportunities for people with special needs.

April 24, 2008 Candee & Katie Basford

• Our speakers, Candee and Katie Basford, will be giving a mother/daughter presentation that addresses living life with Down syndrome, from the perspective of both the parent and the child, in a talk entitled, “Dance With Me.” Candee shares lessons learned from life with her daughter (and artwork it inspired), while Katie shares her dreams and means of pursuing them.
   

• Candee Basford, speaker, author, artist; recently honored with the 2006 TASH Image Award for promoting positive portrayals of people with disabilities in her groundbreaking and exemplary book, We Dance Together, A Painted Essay about My Education with Katie.
   

• Katie - Part-time student, Southern State Community College, Ohio; encourages others with stories about her typical life, stories about going to college, and making friends, stories about her dreams and her disappointments.
   

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