January Bulletin

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January Bulletin Contents: Theater Performances Black History Month Art Show NEW Job Skills Partnerships Professional Promo Video Music as a Universal Language Milestone Celebration Community News Barrier-Free Buzz Coming to the Stage March 2023 Join us March 17, 18, 19 for The Great Casino Caper and Check Matey, at McDaniel College's Alumni Hall! Tickets $10 available online or at the door. Let's see where the chips will fall! Join Kevin Bond and his partner, Arnold Palmeroy, as they embark on solving the wackiest heist in casino history -- The Great Casino Caper! Follow along as seemingly innocent conference attendees practice the art of deception at The Great Casino's annual Detecticon, a conference for police detectives. Will the heist go as planned or will the thieves be caught red-handed as they attempt to acquire expensive merchandise using the ol' five-finger discount? Up next, for this crew of pirates, there's just no adventureon the high seas anymore. Nothing new to fill their day. No obstacles in their way. That is until the wind blows a strange "map" on their shores, thus changing their tides forever! The map? A chess board! Guided by a team of chess players, these crazy buccaneers are ready to learn the game in their own way and win the World Chess Tournament. Together, they’ll tell the world they’re more than just brains and scallywags! McDaniel College's Alumni Hall is wheelchair accessible and accommodating for patrons who have mobility considerations. We will have staff onsite to assist you as needed. Click Here for Advance Tickets Can’t make it to our live shows? Don’t worry! You can order a professionally filmed DVD or digital recording created by SchoolDays Productions HERE. Black History Month Art Show In partnership with the Downtown Sykesville Connection, the Historic Colored Sykesville Colored Schoolhouse, local schools, and artists to bring Sykesville’s first Black History Month Art Show to life! Our Barrier-Free artists will be creating many art pieces to celebrate Black History, Culture, and Empowerment to share with the community. Have an art piece to share? Learn about submission criteria here. Job Skills Partnerships Hatton Animal Rescue On the first Monday of the month, we are will be volunteering at Hatton Animal Rescue to learn job skills! The rescue, located in Glenelg, MD, was founded by Gary and Annette Hatton who saw a great gap in our society when it comes to the care and support of special needs animals and seniors. These animals are the ones most left behind and typically deemed un-salvageable or un-adoptable due to their medical conditions and age. This month we cleaned the duck pools and helped feed the horses, goats, and cows. The opportunity to volunteer helps us extend our sensory threshold, improve our motor planning, focus on tasks for extended periods, and more. Tidal Salt Co. Jenn Banks, owner of Tidal Salt, a boutique, artisan shop, continues to #SupportInclusion in our community by partnering with us on multiple job skills initiatives! During Artist Workshop, our Barrier-Free”ers” create art pieces to be sold at Tidal Salt. We learn micro business skills including pricing, packaging, and branding items for sale. Newly added as part of our Job Skill Coaching program, Barrier-Free members have the opportunity to work at Tidal Salt to learn retail and business management skills in an authentic setting. Pictured Left to Right: Aaron, Jenn, & Tyler, both participants in this program. Fresh off the Press “For me, singing is more effortless than social communication.” - Emily Wachter, Self-Advocate, Peer Mentor, and Barrier-Free’s resident blogger Read at https://www.barrierfreemd.com/blog All About Barrier-Free Do you know someone who may benefit from Barrier-Free’s inclusive community-based programming? We invite you to share our new promo video made by GLBAL Media to showcase all that Barrier-Free has to offer! Our programs support the development of life skills and social skills through an integrated arts model with a focus on interpersonal interaction, authentic practice, and group collaboration in a community-based setting. Milestone Celebrations We’re adding milestone celebrations to The Life Skills & Social Studio! These Studio members have all been part of our program for 12 cumulative months or longer and earned their way into the "One Year" club, plus a commemorative t-shirt! Barrier-Free programs are designed to support our members for the long-term. We provide ongoing skill development mixed with community integration. Building a supportive network of friends helps us navigate society and obtain life goals with greater independence and confidence. Community News Integrative Oral Wellness #CommunityInvolvement at Barrier-Free! We are thrilled to share that Integrative Dental Wellness has selected us as the featured artists for January & February. At The Life Skills & Social Studio, we create art together as a tool to improve cognitive and sensorimotor functions, foster self-esteem and self-awareness, cultivate emotional resilience, promote insight, enhance social skills, and more. Autism and the Gut Dr. Pamela Compart is a developmental pediatrician and integrative/functional medicine physician who has a particular expertise in and passion for treating children with Autism. During this session, Dr. Compart will share how she combines these “outside in” and “inside out” treatments to help a child reach his or her true potential, particularly as it relates to gut intestine imbalance, toxins, deficiencies in vitamins or minerals all to optimize brain function. Learn more and register here. MDH has specifically requested dedicated use of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) to fund up to $5M in competitive grant awards to DD licensed and certified providers and nonprofit community organizations that support the DD community. DDA is hosting an ARPA Grant webinar on January 30, 2023 from 12:00 - 1:00 pm. The presentation offers additional information and insight into the DDA’s kickoff for the ARPA Competitive Grant application. The webinar will go through a complete review of the scope and use of the GrantVantage platform for the application. Register for the webinar here. Thank you for you support! Pictured: Studio Members with Hannah, owner of Botanigal. Barrier-Free was fortunate to be Botanigal’s December non-profit, and receive 1% of total monthly sales.