LeagueNews - Cerebral Palsy League

Facing Fears - FindingFutures9 th Annual Client ConventionTHE State Client ConsultativeCommittee (CCC) hosted the 9 thAnnual Client Convention, on August20, during Cerebral Palsy AwarenessWeek and were again overwhelmedby the support the event attracted.Almost 200 delegates, Leagueclients, friends, family members,staff, volunteers and Board Directorsmet to engage in a challenging,interesting program and share theirexperiences at Riverside Receptions,New Farm.Byron Albury, State CCC Chairmanopened the Convention andintroduced fellow committeemembers.Keynote speaker, Rhoda Fleming,Senior Professional - Social Work, setthe tone for the day on the theme ofFacing Fears - Finding Futures usinghumour and examples.Ms Fleming also chaired a panel ofinvited speakers who spoke to thetheme, from their personalperspectives.Melinda Foord and her young son Willwho has cerebral palsy, were joinedby members of Will’s ‘Circle ofFriends’, to talk about how thisconcept evolved and how they wereall benefiting from being part of Will’scircle.Karni Liddell spoke of herParalympian dreams andexperiences in achieving them.Judy Pagan spoke of the healthissues that older people with cerebralpalsy may face and the strategies sheidentified as being helpful.The event program also included briefaddresses from Bruce Milligan, CEO,Joan Williams, President Parents andGuardians Association and RowenaMcNally, Chairperson of the Board anda robust open forum with BoardDirectors.Ms McNally, in collaboration with theChairman of the State CCC,presented a Board Commendation tostaff member, Yvonne Donnan, for herwork in supporting the State CCC andthe annual conventions over the pastseven years.Volunteer, David Gray, was alsoacknowledged for his long-servingcontribution to the success of theconvention.Musician, Ricky Chaplin, closed theconference with a number of balladsand shared his experiences ofovercoming fears.The State CCC extends its sincerethanks to all staff and volunteers whocame together to make this a greatevent.Below: The audience at the 9th Annual ClientConvention.Front: (left to right) Mobile Personal CareAssistant Kerry Mullin, Nigel Webb, ConventionOrganiser Yvonne Donnan, Kim Schweida andBoard Director Kevin Rodgers.Walk for an Aussie KidFOUR0-year-old League client,Bianca Power celebrated hercourage and raised dollars forother children with a physicaldisability, when she participatedin the “Walk for an Aussie Kid”fundraiser at Chermside duringCerebral Palsy Awareness Week.The Power family joined her tocelebrate her ability to walk usinga Smart Walker (fundraised for bythe Aspley Lions Club) – a mobilityaid used to assist children withphysical disabilities such ascerebral palsy to walk.Walk for an Aussie Kid is anational initiative organised by theAustralian Lions Children’sMobility Foundation.The annual fundraiser – raisingclose to $1 million since beginningin the late 90’s – provides vitalmobility aids for children with adisability.“Mobility aids such as the Smartand Hart Walker cost families upto $6000 to buy and that amountagain to adjust and maintain duringthe growth of their child,”LeagueCEO, Bruce Milligan said.“Some families find it almostimpossible to raise enough fundsfor mobility aids, which are vital fordevelopment, including betterrespiratory and circulatoryfunction,” he said.9