Easter Seals Disability Services

Easter Seals Professional Network

More than two-dozen area professional men and women met for the first time on Wednesday, March 14, 2007, at the Easter Seals Trinity Center in Carrollton.  They met to learn more about Easter Seals programs and services and to find out how they can help children and adults with disabilities.

This new Easter Seals Professional Network (ESPN), chaired by Mark Floyd, founder and owner of Ntegrated Solutions,  is made up of people who are telecommunications experts, teachers, bankers, and attorneys; people who consult in a variety of businesses and people who are entrepreneurs.  Everyone who gathered that evening, with such varied interests and backgrounds, proved one fact about disability:  it does not discriminate.  One in every five people has a disability, and disability comes in all forms physical, emotional, intellectual and sensory.  People everywhere know the effects of disability, and the members of this new group are willing to make help make a difference in people’s lives.

This group’s first project together was a promotional campaign recognizing April as Autism Awareness Month, and helping build understanding of Autism Spectrum Disorders.  During April, life-sized, stand-up, cardboard cutouts of Maurice Snell, Easter Seals 2007 Adult Representative appeared in their places of business.  The cutout of Maurice contain a few startling facts about the incidence of autism in America and information about contacting Easter Seals for help.  Because, until there’s a cure, there’s Easter Seals.

Easter Seals Professional Network also hosted Maurice for a visit to the Metroplex the second week of April 2007.  Many families living with autism had the opportunity to meet this 23-year old man with autism who, with proper help at suitable times in his life, has overcome the challenges presented by his disorder, graduated from college and is successfully employed.  Maurice is an inspiration and a very real example of what is possible. 

The ESPN wants to make the same kind of services that helped Maurice achieve all he has achieved, available to people with autism throughout the Metroplex.  They’re planning an event for this July to help make the dream of finding fulfillment, independence, and belonging a reality for people right here in our community.

Stay tuned to hear more about the amazing work of these dedicated new Easter Seals volunteers.  They’ve only just begun, their dreams are grand and their ambition admirable.  You’ll be hearing more about their work in the months to come.

If you would like to be a part of the Easter Seals Professional Network please contact us.

Watch Maurice's story on WFAA.

The Easter Seals Professional Network is a network primarily comprised of young professionals, that are dedicated to building awareness and supporting Easter Seals to create a community where people with autism and other disabilities are welcome to live, learn, work and play.