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2013 Canadian Down Syndrome Conference

Winnipeg welcomes the annual Canadian Down Syndrome Conference May 17th to 20th, 2013. The conference will take place at the Delta Hotel Downtown. For information on the Speakers and for registration visit the CDSS Conference website at http://www.downsyndromeconference.ca/

Early Bird Conference Rates:

Member $225

Non-Member $275

Self-Advocate $100 (Adults with Down syndrome)

Child $100 (Ages 2 – 17)

Dinner & Dance Adult $65

Dinner & Dance Child $35

December 1st, 2012 - Dinner & Dance

Each November we hold our Annual Dinner & Dance with over 200 people in attendance. The dance is held to celebrate the National Down Syndrome Awareness Week; November 1st - 7th each year.

This year the Dinner & Dance will be held on Saturday, December 1st, 2012 at the Waverly Heights Community Centre at 1885 Chancellor Drive from 5:15 PM until 10 PM. A delicious family style turkey dinner is served by Phyllis's Catering. Door prizes are won, and a DJ Crystal Sounds and Lights will keep the dance floor hopping.

This Dinner & Dance is subsidized by the generous donations generated by the MDSS Annual Buddy Walk, making it a fun and affordable evening. This event is held to correspond with our celebration of National Down Syndrome Awareness Week! From the littlest tykes to young adults to grandparents, a great time is had by all.

COST: 13 years and older - $10.00 2-12 years - $5 Under 2 years – free. RSVP NO LATER THAN NOVEMBER. You must pre-order and can pay by credit card or cheque. Contact MDSS to order your tickets today!

Dinner & Dance 2010 & 2011

Buddy Nights

Buddy Night is open to all MDSS members aged 16 – 27 years. Events are supervised by volunteer parents and paid staff. Any members in this age group are encouraged to participate, however if there are any “extra needs” (i.e. feeding, toileting, or significant behavior issues) a support person must accompany the participant. For more information on Buddy Nights contact Karen Pfeifer at karenpfeifer@yahoo.ca.

In October the Buddy Night Group had a blast! Nineteen young adults enjoyed a delicious dinner at the Oakwood Café in St. Vital, and then danced the night away at the annual Halloween Dance at the Fort Rouge Leisure Centre.

Our fall Buddy Night was held on September 22^nd, 2012 at the Academy Bowling Lanes. The evening included glow bowling followed by pizza, drinks and fun in the party room.

Our Spring Buddy Night took 18 people to supper at The Original Pancake House, then travelled by limos to a Hawaiian Dance at the Fort Rouge Leisure Centre. A wonderful time was had by all!

Click Here for Buddy Night Photos

LiveWires

Lisa’s Saturday Night Livewires, a social club for young people with Down syndrome, was formed in the fall of 2006. It was a dream of one of our beautiful young ladies - Lisa Mitchell. Sadly, Lisa passed away at a tender young age and was not able to see the group formed. The group lives on in her name.

Livewires gatherings provide opportunities for our young people to get together for fun, social Saturday evenings - without parents! The original members remain a cohesive group, with only one member moving out of province and one leaving the group over the last 5 years. The teens are now young adults who have become great friends, who socialize outside of Livewires times, and often include each other in their special celebrations.

The club generally meets twice per month in the big hall at Church of the Way in RiverHeights, where they ‘hang out’ as only young people can do. Occasional outings, such as bowling or mini-golf, have been great fun as well.

Families pay an annual fee of $150.00 per year for club participation. The balance of the costs for staff salaries and hall rental is subsidized by the generosity of the MDSS.

Livewires was created by a group of 5 parents. It took very little time to arrange, and is very low maintenance from year to year. MDSS would love to see the creation of a new, similar club for our current teens. We are searching for a group of parents who are willing to put in a little time making the initial arrangements. Please contact the MDSS office if you would like to head up this venture.

Click Here for LiveWires Photo

Baby Love - Semi Annual Event

Baby Love is a semi annual event that brings families together to meet new babies with Down syndrome and their families.

The events are held at St. Saviour’s Anglican Church Hall, 690 Munroe Avenue. Entertainment, Coffee, Tea, Juice and Snacks are provided.

Contact MDSS if you are interested in attending this event.

Baby Love Photos

See Me Beautiful Annual Conference

See Me Beautiful is an annual workshop is offered in the Fall for parents and school teams supporting a child with Down syndrome. The goal of the workshop is to empower support teams welcoming children with Down syndrome into their classrooms by:
1) providing information regarding Down syndrome, with a focus on learning characteristics and academic programming
2) providing a setting where educators and parents can interact informally.

The 2013 Conference featured Megan Milani Author of: The 3 Habits of Highly Successful Reading Teachers. Megan Milani is an elementary school principal, consultant, reading specialist and author from the Niagara, Ontario area. Megan’s philosophy starts with her unshakable belief that ALL students can learn to read. Her approach to teaching reading has shown a great success, is practical, and is easily integrated into any language arts program.

Stay Tuned for details about the 2014 Conference!

Annual Buddy Walk

The 5th annual MDSS Buddy Walk was held on Sunday September 23rd at the Canadian Mennonite University located at 500 Shaftesbury. Registration took place at 12 noon. The walk began at 2 PM. There were 498 people at the event and $34,000 was raised!

On the school grounds there was entertainment, games for kids, clowns, mascots, magic, balloon art, face painters. Music was performed by Fred Penner and Free Ride. Silent auction prizes that were won included; TV, BBQ, Kobo Readers, Gift Certificates and more!

Cake and drinks were offered at the end of the walk. Dominos pizza was available for purchase.

Buddy Walk Photos THANK YOU to our sponsors