Come Join "Maya's Team"

My older daughter, Carrie, has for the past ten years or better now often participated in walk-a-thons or even races for various organizations, helping to try to raise funds. Two of her favorite organizations that she has participated in walks or races for them are the Special Olympics and the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation. I've always admired her for taking that initiative and doing that.

And, over the years, she has often teased me to sign up sometime for a walk or to volunteer for the Special Olympics and in the beginning, when she got involved in these things, I couldn't because of my work. Then I got sick and couldn't do much of anything at home, much less trying to participate in things like that.

However, I have actually taken a big step - a very, very big one for me - and I will be joining both my daughters (Carrie and Mandy), my older grandson, Alexander, and Carrie's fiance, Robert on April 14th in State College, PA to participate in a 3K walk to benefit the Autism Cures Group. We are doing this as a family - a team - and our team's name is "Maya's Team."

This is being done by us because although my little princess, Miss Maya, has not yet been evaluated and therefore has not been diagnosed with Autsim, there are many markers present that right now lead us to believe she will eventually be diagnosed with Autism.

I'm posting this information here, now, and a request too for any of you, my readers, to please go to our Team's website, read the information there, see the photo we've posted too of Miss Maya (with her Princess dolls) and hopefully, many of you will see fit to sign on to donate to our team whatever you feel is within your financial range to this very worthy and necessary cause.

It will be two years this June since Maya's pediatrician referred Maya to a children's assistance agency here and their initial evaluation of her then was that she does have several developmental delays. Since then, Maya has had two therapists who come to our home once a week and work with her on improving her coordination, her behavior skills, her speech. And, the changes that have taken place in her from that therapy have been nothing less than OUTSTANDING! She still has many issues which, quite possibly are caused by Autism but we don't know that for sure as yet because we have not yet been able to find someone qualified to evaluate her and to get an appointment for that. But oh my, she has come such a long way and it is wonderful beyond description to see these little things taking place within her.

Though most of you reading my blog don't know me personally - a few of my readers do though - I will tell you that I am not exactly a big physical fitness enthusiast. Walking is something I will do occasionally in the spring, summer, fall but is completely out of the question during the cold, winter months for sure! And, to prove to everyone who knows me that I actually participated in this walk, my daughters both plan to bring cameras and take lots and lots of pictures of me - walking - to raise money to help cure Autism. I promise faithfully that I will post said photos on my blog after this is all said and done too!

So anyway - here's the website for our team!
http://www.cureautismnow.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=
216546&lis=0&kntae216546=33F1BF6014CD4923AD658D8FFBEF6D44

(You might have to copy and paste this url into your browser to get it to work because of the length of it. )

On the page, go to the right hand side and look for the block that says "Team Rank" and scroll down till you come to "Maya's Team" - with my name there (Jennifer Ertmer) and you can click on there to going our team as a supporter!

I hope you will forward this to others you know too and help our team - Maya's Team - help us be one of the top teams present at the State College Cure Autism Walk on April 14, 2007!
Please! For my little Princess, Maya!