Apraxia Walk 2015

Monday, October 26, 2015
Saturday was an amazing day in our community. Family members, friends, teachers, speech therapists (and SLP students!) all came out to support Childhood Apraxia of Speech. For any readers unfamiliar with Apraxia, Childhood apraxia of speech (CAS) is a motor speech disorder. Children with CAS have problems saying sounds, syllables, and words. This is not because of muscle weakness or paralysis. The brain has problems planning to move the body parts (e.g., lips, jaw, tongue) needed for speech. The child knows what he or she wants to say, but his/her brain has difficulty coordinating the muscle movements necessary to say those words (ASHA)
Rachel Anderson, the event coordinator, did a fabulous job organizing the walk. This day was truly was all about the kids. During the opening ceremony, children with CAS were awarded with medals to recognize their hard work. There was also a speech given by a little girl that described her journey with Apraxia. There was not a dry eye in the park by the time her speech was over. 
After the walk was over, it was time for some fun! There were so many fun activities for the kids from building with Home Depot, decorating pumpkins, arts and crafts, a reading corner with free books for the kids, a photo booth, a drum circle, and some awesome jams blasting so the kids could all enjoy a dance party!
 Kenzie had so much fun taking in all of the activities. Kameron snoozed in the stroller most of the day because it was so gorgeous out! I hope to continue to be able to be a part of these walks and events in the future. I want Kenzie &  Kameron to continue to be a part of these events and show their support to the community. 
 Rachel if you are reading this, your efforts in putting this event together was amazing. I know that the kids appreciated all that you did as well as their families. These children often feel excluded from their peers because of their speech disorder, but this day made them all feel like rockstars!! 

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