Friends,
What a glorious fall here in the Catskill Mountains! We can’t recall an autumn when the leaves were as bright and stayed so brilliant in hue – for so long! The good weather has led to a plentiful harvest and a lot of time outdoors, and we are thankful for the stunning environment we call home.
More and more we are turning that gratitude outward – and teaching others around the country what we know about educating and caring for those with complex conditions.
This month was a perfect example.
Here are some brief highlights from the month of October:
Children’s Specialty Hospital Update
Nothing is slowing down our dream to bring the TCFD model of care to the greater community, with construction of The Children’s Specialty Hospital in Rock Hill, New York moving steadily along.
The concrete footings for the medically-fragile addition are being poured right now. They will be followed by the concrete slab in early December. We anticipate the opening of the hospital, the first-of-its-kind, in fall of 2022.
Sharing Our Knowledge
Our incredible Integrated Arts Team continues to graciously share the wealth of their knowledge across the country. Don’t forget to sign up and watch what they are doing across the campus!
Up next: “Creating a Functional Sensory Space,” “Using Technology to Make Music,” and “Thinking Outside of the Box: Innovations from the Assistive Technology Lab.”
To register for this series, please visit: https://bit.ly/TCFDClinicalInnovationSeries2021. To view past videos in this series, head to: https://bit.ly/TCFDClinicalInnovationSeminarSeries2021.
A Lesson We Have Learned
Here at The Center we believe in teachable moments. Covid-19 was a HUGE teachable moment in our history.
And so, when we are invited to educate others on how we successfully worked with our staff, residents, and students through the pandemic – we say “yes!”
This past month our Director of Music Therapy, Conio Loretto, was chosen to give a presentation to his colleagues at the (virtual) National Conference of the American Music Therapy Association.
His talk – aptly titled – “Alone Together: Community Music Therapy and the Covid-19 Pandemic.”
“The conference was a wonderful opportunity to share with Music Therapists from across the country the ways our TCFD Music Therapy team pivoted as the pandemic began and continues to unfold,” said Conio.
New Film on Autism and the Coming of Age
Meet the cast of the new movie Our Christmas Journey. It’s the story of Nik Sanchez (red shirt in center) and his family, including single-mom, actress Holly Robinson Peete. The story shares the family’s journey to help Nik thrive as he reaches adulthood. Nik, like the character he plays, has autism. A number of other actors in the film have autism, as well. TCFD Executive Vice President of Marketing and Communications, Michael Rosen consulted on the film. Look for it on the Hallmark Channel – on December 4th.
For updates on the production – follow Actress and autism mom Holly Robinson Peete on Twitter at @HollyRPeete. And don’t forget to follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for other updates on the film.
The Center for – APPLES!
Perfect temperatures, lots of rain, and even more love for our land and trees – and voilá – a copious crop of apples! Our residents and students could not get enough of apple picking this year! They adore everything about it – the picking, sorting, washing, and of course, tasting.
Here at The Center, nutrition is our core, so we are also incorporating these little vitamin powerhouses into meals, making snacks like apple rings, and pressing them for fresh cider. Yum!