Approximately 1 in 54 children in America is diagnosed with autism, making Autism Awareness Month each April ever more crucial to spreading awareness, knowledge, and most importantly, compassion, for those with autism in their lives. One of those people is Kate Swenson, whose world stopped when her then-toddler, Cooper, was diagnosed with severe, nonverbal autism. Cooper is now eleven, with three younger siblings, and Kate shares posts and videos of their day-to-day life in the community of 730K+ that she’s built across her blog, Finding Cooper’s Voice, and Facebook page.
With her popular blog Finding Cooper's Voice, Kate Swenson has provided hope and comfort for hundreds of thousands of parents of children with autism. Now, Kate shares her inspiring story in this powerful memoir about motherhood and unconditional love.
When Kate Swenson’s son, Cooper, was diagnosed with severe, nonverbal autism, her world stopped. She had always dreamed of having the perfect family life. She hadn’t signed up for life as a mother raising a child with a disability.
At first, Kate experienced the grief of broken dreams. Then she felt the frustration and exhaustion of having to fight for your child in a world that is stacked against them. But through hard work, resilience, and personal growth, she would come to learn that Cooper wasn’t the one who needed to change. She was. And it was this transformation that led Kate to acceptance - and ultimately joy. In Forever Boy, Kate shares her inspiring journey with honesty and compassion, offering solace and hope to others on this path and illuminating the strength and perseverance of mothers.
Isaac Zablocki is the Director of Film Programs at JCC Manhattan. He attended film school at Columbia University and went on to work at Miramax Films. Previously, he produced and directed feature films and developed film educational programs for the Board of Education. Since 2004, Isaac has been developing film programs at the JCC including the Israel Film Center. Beyond ReelAbilities, he programs multiple film festivals annually, including the acclaimed Other Israel Film Festival, which focuses on Arab and underrepresented populations in Israel.
ABOUT ReelAbilities Film Festival: New York Founded in 2007 by the Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan, ReelAbilities Film Festival: New York is the largest festival in the country dedicated to promoting awareness and appreciation of the lives, stories and artistic expressions of people with disabilities. The weeklong festival is renowned for its wide-ranging international film selection, riveting conversations, and performances, presented annually in dozens of venues across the New York metropolitan area. In 2010, ReelAbilities Film Festival: New York expanded into an international program, presenting its one-of-a-kind programming in cities throughout the United States, Canada, and South America.
ReelAbilities International Program In 2012, other cities across the country followed New York’s footsteps by hosting ReelAbilities Film Festivals, starting with Cincinnati, Ohio. Since then, ReelAbilities events have been held in over 20 cities across the world – transitioning from ReelAbilities North America to ReelAbilities International. ReelAbilities events have expanded from the U.S., Canada, and Latin America—and take place in many different forms: Film festivals, year round screenings, and special programming that goes beyond film. Since its start, ReelAbilities has consistently received an increasing number of outstanding film submissions from around the globe. The ReelAbilities International headquarters is located in NY, expanding its screenings throughout schools, communities, offices and organizations in communities across the globe.
ACCESSIBILITY ReelAbilities Film Festival: New York strives to include all people. All festival venues are wheelchair accessible, and the festival presents all films with open captions. The JCC offers CART (live transcription) at every event for introductions, post-screening conversations, and non-film programming. In 2018 for the first time, the JCC also offers Audio Description for the visually impaired for every feature film and several short films. Some other venues will also offer this accessibility aid. (Audio Description availability is noted on individual venue and program pages.) ASL interpretation will be available at many events at the JCC and may be available at other venues with advance notice. The festival catalog is available in Braille from the JCC box office. If you require an accessibility accommodation, please contact the specific venue presenting the event you would like to attend. OUR MISSION
ReelAbilities Film Festival is the largest festival in the U.S. dedicated to promoting awareness and appreciation of the lives, stories, and artistic expressions of people with disabilities. Founded in New York City in 2007, the festival presents international and award-winning films by and about people with disabilities in multiple locations throughout each hosting city. Post-screening discussions and other engaging programs bring together the community to explore, discuss, embrace, and celebrate the diversity of our shared human experience.
FILM SELECTION COMMITTEE Each year, ReelAbilities receives hundreds of submissions. The NY-based Film Selection Committee, comprised of individuals from diverse professional backgrounds, previews all submissions in different staged of consideration for the NY edition, after which each host city makes its own curation from that selection.
ReelAbilities NY 2022 Film Selection Committee: Andrew Pilkington (Producer/Writer of Best Summer Ever) Anita Altman (ReelAbilities co-founder) Anita Hollander (National Chair, SAG-AFTRA Performers with Disabilities) Juliette Romeo (Founder of Slamdance UNSTOPPABLE Film /Curator/Programmer, CEO, Media Jules) Lynn Bartner-Wiesel (ReelAbilities co-chair) Mayer Waxman (MA MSW, Managing Director Senior Communities, Self-help Community Services, Inc.) Michelle Feig (ReelAbilities co-chair) Peter Lubell Ronnie Ellen Raymond (United Spinal Association, Member of the Board of Directors) Sofiya Cheyanne (Actor / Advocate) Xian Horn (beauty and accessibility advocate, speaker, instructor, Forbes contributor, and founder of the non-profit Give Beauty Wings.)
Blossoms are blooming and spring is here. It’s the perfect time to visit the UCI School of Humanities outdoor museum that weaves through the corridors of its corner of campus. 21 light poles are adorned with banners featuring unique illustrations of significant historical moments that the humanities help us understand.
The diverse display features global art, literary, film, television and social history achievements ranging from the first summer blockbuster in the movie industry to the genesis of Chaucer’s writing of The Canterbury Tales and from the construction of the first transcontinental railroad tracks in the U.S. to the start of the Salvadoran revolution.
Each banner features a QR code that links visitors to a website with explanations about how the moment impacted history from the faculty member who selected it.
“‘Humanities: It’s Time’ reflects how humans across cultures, geography and time have responded to social conflict and change with innovative literature, film, architecture, social movements, and industries that influence the course of history,” said Tyrus Miller, dean of the School of Humanities. “Our historical 'hot takes' are not just celebratory, though—each moment is complex and layered, and some even proved devastating in their ultimate outcome. But that too is a key point of the ‘Humanities: It's Time’ display. In the humanities, we bravely face what it is to be human across time; only by confronting and critically interpreting our legacies can we guide ourselves to brighter futures.”
The French Film Festival is a four-night festival that begins each night with a cultural event at 6:30 P.M. in the Campus Theater patio area. The cultural event features food, art, and music that represent a little bit of French or German culture.
All Movies begin at 7:30 P.M. in the campus theater.
The #1 New York Times bestselling author of Go the F*** to Sleep and healthy eating advocate Camila Alves McConaughey turn a classic parenting trope on its head in JUST TRY ONE BITE.
COMING UP April 2nd 2:00pm in Los Angeles, come meet Camila at her book signing:
Illustrated by Mike Boldt, JUST TRY ONE BITE is a hilarious role-reversal tale of three kids who try to convince their over-the-top gagging, picky eater parents to choose a healthier approach to food. From the classic “here comes the airplane!” to chasing their parents around the house with broccoli, these kids try everything to get their mom and dad to just try one bite. JUST TRY ONE BITEis a great way to introduce picky eaters to everything from yams and beets to linguini with clams! It’s sure to broaden their palates while also teaching them about finding the balance between all foods.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Camila Alves McConaughey
Photo is Courtesy of Camila Alves McConaughey
Camila Alves McConaughey is a dedicated mom who values the importance of healthy eating. She is also an entrepreneur and founder of Women of Today, a lifestyle site and community powered by women around the globe. She lives in Texas with her husband, Matthew McConaughey, and their three children. Camila was a mushroom skeptic for thirty-seven years, until a bowl of veggie Bolognese in 2020 turned her into a mushroom lover. Keep trying those veggies!
About Adam Mansbach
Adam Mansbach is a novelist, screenwriter, cultural critic and humorist. He is the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Go the F*** to Sleep, which has been translated into forty languages, named Time Magazine's 2011 "Thing of the Year," and sold over two million copies worldwide. The 2014 sequel, "You Have to F****** Eat," is also a New York Times bestseller.
Mansbach was recently nominated for an Independent Spirit Award and an NAACP Image Award for his screenplay BARRY. The film premiered to rave reviews at the Toronto International Film Festival, where it was acquired by Netflix. Released as a Netflix Original on December 16, 2016, BARRY was directed by Vikram Gandhi and stars Devon Terrell, Anya Taylor-Joy, Ellar Coltrane, Ashley Judd, Jason Mitchell, Jenna Elfman, and Avi Nash. READ MORE
MEET THE ILLUSTRATOR
Mike Boldt is an author and illustrator from Canada. His books include Bad Dogand Find Fergus, as well as the I Don't Want to Be a Frog series, written by Dev Petty, and How to Grow a Dinosaur, written by Jill Esbaum. And while Mike really enjoys them now, just onebite of Brussels sprouts used to make him gag.
JUST TRY ONE BITE –Talking Points
Author’s personal experience: Camila is a mother of three and healthy eating advocate who knows the importance of starting good eating habits early.
Introducing new foods: From yams and beets to linguini with clams, this story is a great way to introduce picky eaters to foods that'll broaden their palates.
Kids know best: This role reversal is every kids' dream where they get to tell their adults what's best.
Everything in moderation: While these kids are trying to get their adults to eat healthier, the end message is about finding a balance between all foods and not about cutting out certain food groups entirely.
All-star team: Adam Mansbach, bestselling author of Go the F**k to Sleep, and Camila Alves McConaughey, a healthy eating advocate who’s married to Matthew McConaughey, have created a rhyme that's perfect to read aloud, and acclaimed illustrator Mike Boldt's art brilliantly bring to their story to life.
LISTEN to today's show featuring Karen V. Johnson, JD
With the Holidays over, many people are left to cope with their magnified feelings of grief & loss of a loved one, a beloved pet, a job that no longer exists, loss of income, a home, and even a loss of self. According to The Atlantic 72% of Americans say that they know someone who has died or hospitalized due to COVID, making 6.6 million Americans could be effected by bereavement. A recent study by UCLA indicates how Americans are suffering Psychological Distress from a job loss.
Karen V. Johnson's fast-paced professional career as a lifetime appointed Federal Judge came to an abrupt halt when she lost her 27 year-old son to a heroin overdose. Rather than grieve in a way that made people around her comfortable, she did the unexpected. She quit her job, sold her house with all her belongings, and went on a 2½ year journey that took her all over the world, finding a healing practice along the way.
Karen didn't think she could ever find her way out of despair, but she found a process that works and shares the journey of transformation with others so they can heal too.
"Grief is a state of being that carries energy you can tap into to create a new life" - Karen V. Johnson
Karen V. Johnson, JD, is a graduate of Georgetown Law Center (J.D.), a former Fulbright Scholar in Afghanistan, and holds Masters Degrees in Public Health and Public and International Affairs (MPH, MPIA). Karen is a retired federal administrative law judge who practiced criminal and energy law for more than 30 years. She also is a former U.S. Army officer, Major, USAR (inactive). Karen was personally trained by Alberto Villoldo, and is faculty at the Four Winds Society and a Master Practitioner of Energy Medicine. She has trained extensively in the techniques of Illumination, Soul Retrieval, Extractions of Energies and Entities, Divination, and Death Rites. Living Grieving: Using Energy Medicine to Alchemize Grief and Loss (Hay House, July 7th, 2021), is her first book.
"Whatever your loss—a loved one, a job, a sense of self—you too will find her story and guidance profoundly helpful and transformational."— Elizabeth Lesser, co-founder, Omega Institute and best-selling author of Broken Open, Cassandra Speaks, and other books
Talking Points:
Karen's personal journey through grief after the death of her son to a heroin overdose
Mindfulness practices for grief & loss
How to cope with grief and loss in the New Year
Ways to honor a passed loved one
Identifying grief and loss - it's much more than most people think
Using grief and loss to build a new life
What to say and not say to people who are grieving or experiencing loss
Simple steps to be a supportive family, friend, or co-worker
Ancient approaches to grief & loss, and the process of healing
Making peace with regrets, guilt, and despair
Finding self-compassion during a bereavement journey
Ancient Shamanic practices to heal the wounds of grief & loss
Karen writes, “I want you to know something really important. You may be feeling stuck in your grief and wondering why you can’t seem to get over it. I felt the same way until I realized we do not get over grief. It’s not like catching the flu; we aren’t sick. There is no cure, and we can’t medicate it away. Grief is a state of being that carries energy that you can tap into to create a new life. Just as we use the energy of other newly acquired states of being like marriage or parenthood to transform our lives, we can likewise use the energy of grieving to transform.”
Audrey Steele Burnand estate gifts $57.75 million to UCI
Majority will establish world-class, campuswide depression research center
Irvine, Calif., Feb. 7, 2022 — The estate of Audrey Steele Burnand has gifted $57.75 million to the University of California, Irvine to fund the creation of a new campuswide center that will pursue research into the causes and treatment of depression and also support the UCI-managed Steele/Burnand Anza-Borrego Desert Research Center.
More than $55 million of the gift is earmarked for advancing depression research at UCI. It’s believed to be the largest philanthropic donation to a U.S. university to support research focused solely on depression, which is the most prevalent mental health disorder in the U.S.
“This is a truly transformative gift from a longtime and great supporter of our vital work,” said UCI Chancellor Howard Gillman. “Audrey Steele Burnand’s legacy will enable us to create a world-class research center that builds upon UCI’s historical excellence in the neurosciences to make life better for millions of people.”
According to the American Psychiatric Association, depression affects about 1 in 15 adults in any given year. And 1 in 6 people will experience the disorder at some point in their life. Depression can occur at any time, but on average, it first appears during the late teens to mid-20s. Women are more likely than men to undergo depression, with some studies showing that one-third of them will experience a major depressive episode in their lifetime.
“This gift provides a unique opportunity for UCI to establish a world-class research center focused on the area of depression, which is extremely important from a societal point of view,” said Pramod Khargonekar, vice chancellor for research. “With our campus strength in interdisciplinary, collaborative research, we are in a great position to leverage this support to produce discoveries about this debilitating disorder.”
The gift will create the Noel Drury M.D. Depression Research Center. Drury is a board-certified psychiatrist who practiced in Newport Beach.
“This is an opportunity for UCI to make an enormous contribution toward helping the millions of people who directly and indirectly suffer from the effects of depression, which has become a major mental health crisis that can lead to job loss, social relationship breakdowns, drug abuse and suicide,” said Frank LaFerla, dean of the School of Biological Sciences. “Through the discoveries made at this outstanding new research center, we look forward to becoming a global scientific leader in uncovering the underpinnings of depression and helping those who need it most.”
UCI is distinctively able to use the Burnand gift through the Drury Depression Research Center to conduct innovative research in myriad campus areas – from biology and the health sciences to engineering and the social sciences. The university already has well-established and influential centers for Alzheimer’s disease and dementia (UCI MIND), behavior and learning (the Center for the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory and the Conte Center@UCI), and integrative health (the Susan Samueli Integrative Health Institute) that are potentially poised to benefit from Burnand’s philanthropy.
“I think it’s an extraordinarily exciting development to have a major investment like this in an area in which UCI has so many traditional strengths,” says Dr. Michael J. Stamos, dean of the School of Medicine. “Our objective will be to execute on a full spectrum of research – from basic science to translational studies to clinical trials. It must go from bench to bedside, and I am certain we have the ability to do this.”
About Audrey Steele Burnand A well-known philanthropist who lived in Newport Beach, Burnand contributed to the arts, education, environmental conservation, and scientific and medical research at institutions throughout Southern California. She died on June 27, 2020. During her lifetime, she supported Alzheimer’s disease research at UCI MIND and made gifts to create and support the Steele/Burnand Anza-Borrego Desert Research Center.
As part of her estate gift to the university, $2.6 million will go toward providing perpetual support to the UCI-managed Steele/Burnand Anza-Borrego Desert Research Center, which is located in Borrego Springs and is part of the University of California Natural Reserve System. The 75-acre facility provides research and environmental engagement opportunities for students, scientists and the community.
About the University of California, Irvine: Founded in 1965, UCI is the youngest member of the prestigious Association of American Universities and is ranked among the nation's top 10 public universities by U.S. News & World Report. The campus has produced five Nobel laureates and is known for its academic achievement, premier research, innovation and anteater mascot. Led by Chancellor Howard Gillman, UCI has more than 36,000 students and offers 224 degree programs. It’s located in one of the world’s safest and most economically vibrant communities and is Orange County’s largest employer, contributing $7 billion annually to the local economy and $8 billion statewide. For more on UCI, visit www.uci.edu.
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
