PANDI

To end March Break, we had a family movie night at The Dorset Park Community Hub where children watched How To Train Your Dragon (amazing movie, the second one is better, I promise :) and parents watched a clip from a documentary created and artistically mastered by Maria-Saroja Ponnambalam. The documentary shares her families story of silence and stigma, and investigates her Uncle Pandi's unexplained death. Pandi, an aspiring film director himself, began experiencing symptoms of bi-polar after migrating from India to Canada. A mix of interviews with family, home videos, letters and animated scenes from Pandi's last script reveals his deep isolation and creative drive towards the final phase of his life.

The event was well attended and the discussion was engaging and insightful. I am so thankful that Saroja and her family came to the event and shared their story; on behalf of FAME, Agincourt Community Services Association and the Scarborough Community, we want to say thank you again for their time and dedication in sharing such a powerful story.

The documentary speaks to a greater need for challenging stigma around mental illness and while we have come a long way, we still have far to go. This film, which is Saroja's first feature documentary, highlights the need for cultural awareness, education and acceptance around mental illness. While we only got a sneak peak of the film during the event, please stay tuned as I will be planning with Saroja to have a full length screening of the documentary in the future.

Maria-Saroja Ponnambalam has a BFA in Film Production from York University, and is currently completing her MA in Human Geography at the University of Toronto. She is Canadian born, of South-Indian and Venezuelan parents. Saroja's artistic talent did not stop at 'Pandi', her other documentaries include THE CONSEQUENCE OF RAIN (Venezuala, 2008), and PRETTY LITTLE BITS (Canada, 2009) which have been screened at various festivals around the world. Saroja, hopes to continue working on artistic and well-crafted films that have a greater social impact.

www.thepandistory.com

Young Carers Article

The International Child and Youth Care Network released an article in their online journal for March on Young Carers. Young Carers: Children Caring for Family Members Living with an Illness or Disability, written by Andrea Harstone, Sara Bergen and Magdalena Sweetgrass can be found between pages 6-14 of the PDF. The article states "It is estimated that in Canada almost 570,000 children under the age of 12 live in households with parents who experience mood, anxiety or substance use disorders, corresponding to 12.1% of all children in this age group," and contains many of the underlying fundamental beliefs of our FAMEkids program, "Psychosocial education groups can be a useful tool to provide education and support to these young people. Lessons on stress reduction and emotional expression, as well as a place to know you are not alone and that other young people have similar experiences, can be a very useful component to ensure that young carers are supported in their role."

Tax Tips for People With Disabilities and Their Families 2014

Once again, the Income Tax filing deadline is fast approaching and The Special Needs Planning Group is here to give you tips and answer any questions. For the last 9 years, they have been sharing tax tips and information with people with disabilities and their families. Follow this link TAX TIPS  to their website where they have lots of information to assist in preparing for 2014 Income Tax Returns, they offer a break down of information with regards to deductions and credits that may be available as well as other relevant information.

If you have any questions or inquires please connect with...
Graeme Treeby
The Special Needs Planning Group
70 Ivy Crescent, Stouffville, ON L4A 5A9
graemetreeby@sympatico.ca

Happy Filing!!

The Power Of Vulnerability

I wanted to share a TEDTALK I watched recently.
Brene Brown presented a talk on the power of vulnerability where she expands upon her research about human connection - our ability as humans to empathize, belong and love. In her work she explores vulnerability, courage, shame and authenticity and has done a few talks which are equally as interesting and relevant.
The Power Of Vulnerability 
Listening to Shame 

"you are imperfect and wired for struggle,
 but are worthy of love and belonging"

Circus Berserkus!

In November I had posted about a project a friend of mine was involved with, Lookup Theatre. Talk to Youth Lately (TTYL) mental health social circus program is a group of young people 16-30 who have experienced mental health issues or are close friends and family members of those who have.  TTYL uses a youth engagement approach, so all performances are written by young people, together with TTYL professional staff.

TTYL has built a new show called Circus Berserkus for post-secondary students aimed at addressing mental health stigma and promoting mental health recovery. This performance will focus on recovery based messages of hope, and the idea that mental health and illnesses occur on a continuum, which are all human experiences.  Using theatre and circus skills like juggling, acro-balancing, aerial circus and comedy, they tell their stories and connect with the audience. 

We are able to offer FREE tickets to this event! 

Event dates are:

Friday, March 19  8pm

Saturday, March 20 4pm

Saturday, March 20 8pm

Location:

Al Green Theatre

750 Spadina Avenue

Toronto, Ontario

M5S 2J2

If you are interested, or know of anyone that might be interested, please contact me by email at karenn@fameforfamilies.com or by phone/text 647-403-9305 for tickets.