SAVE THE DATE: Sunday, April 22, 2012

Coconuts and pineapple are probably not as appealing right now as pumpkins and cranberries, but think February, when team registration will begin for our 4th annual Hoa Aloha Autism Awareness Bowling Event. I don't know about you, but I'll be ready for a taste of the tropics during that home stretch of winter. And Good Friend will bring it to New Berlin Bowl (16000 W. Cleveland Ave.) during our two sessions, one at 10:30 a.m. and the other beginning at 1:00 p.m., on Sunday, April 22, 2012.

So start thinking about your team name (the ones with a Hawaiian flavor are always the best!) and participants (up to 6, with at least one adult age 21 or older).  And watch for details after the first of the year.  If you have any connections to bowling leagues or area lanes in southeast Wisconsin, please let Chelsea know, 414-510-0385, so we can get materials to them. We're looking forward to making this our biggest and best event ever!

And those diamond drop earrings? They'll be raffled off at New Berlin Bowl at 3:30. Raffle tickets for those are available, $5 for 1 and $20 for 5. Winner does not need to be present at the drawing, but will have to present the winning ticket to claim the earrings.

Sponsorship opportunities will be available as of November 1. Contact Chelsea for details.

Middle School Film Wins First Award

When Chelsea received the call in June that she and Denise had won the Autism Society Media Excellence in Video, Print or News Award for Choosing To Be a GFF, she ran around breathless.  Especially considering the other huge contributions to the field this past year, namely HBO's original movie Temple Grandin and Academy Award-winning director Gerardine Wurzburg's Wretches & Jabberers, this national honor is received with equal parts of ecstasy and humility.

The 42nd Annual Autism Society Conference and Exposition held at the Gaylord Palms Hotel and Convention Center near Orlando was much the same experience. From dining next to W&J stars Tracy Thresher and Larry Bissonnette to chatting with educators from as far away as Alaska, Good Friend's group of gals returned to Milwaukee both exhilarated and exhausted.  Chelsea and Denise presented "From Process to Product: Creating a Culture of Acceptance in Middle School" with Learning Specialist Ann Akre on Thursday, delivered their acceptance speeches on Friday before a packed ballroom, and rounded out the expo on Saturday with help from volunteers Denise Budde and Dani Rossa.


Summer is half over already.  Time to start planning for staff in-service and student character development opportunities.  Remember that Chelsea and Denise will deliver Good Friend's autism awareness-acceptance-empathy® services (staff in-services, Peer Sensitivity Workshops for grades K-5, Individual Classroom Presentations for grades 6-8, and assemblies differentiated for grade levels between 2 and 8) within a 75-mile radius of Waukesha, Wis., without travel expenses.  Mileage allowance applies beyond that service area.

If you think Good Friend's autism awareness / peer sensitivity DVDs will fit into an existing program at your school, you may purchase them online through our website ($52 each; volume discounts available - call 414-510-0385 for details) or mail a purchase order to Good Friend Inc., 808 Cavalier Dr., Waukesha WI  53186.  Note that 2-disc DVD sets (one of each elementary and middle school films in English) are now available for $99, but aren't yet featured in our online store.


Feel free to email Chelsea or Denise for more information.  Enjoy the rest of your summer!

Do you know a Good Friend in Education?

Nominations are due at the end of this month for the teacher, student, parent, and/or other supportive team member who's shown "good friend" behavior in school.  What does that mean?, you ask.  The awareness-acceptance-empathy® message isn't just a model -- it's a movement.  We want to know who in your school is reaching out to students with autism spectrum disorder and including them in a meaningful way.  Maybe it was something simple, such as initiating conversation on the playground.  Maybe it was a moment of exceeding expectations, such as during a small group project.  Perhaps it was the parent of a typically-developing child who encouraged her son to invite his friend with autism over for a play date.  Or perhaps it was a staff member who, after participating in a Good Friend in-service or other presentation, was moved to establish a purposeful culture of acceptance in her classroom.

We have heard many examples of Good Friend behavior over the years, and enjoy every story.  Please share yours with us.  To nominate someone for the 2011 Good Friend in Education Award, which is presented by Denise Schamens at our annual membership meeting in Waukesha in September, please email the following information to denise@goodfriendinc.com:

• Your (nominator's) name, title (if applicable), and the school name associated with the nominee
• Your phone number
• The nominee's name, grade/title (as applicable), and contact information (phone and/or email address)
• Tell us in a 100-word (or less) essay why the nominee deserves the GFiE Award.

Call Denise at 262-391-1369 with any questions.  Here's to good friends!

Celebrate with us the premiere of "Choosing To Be a GFF" on March 27!

We couldn't be more thrilled to announce the first public screening of our latest original, independent film, "Choosing To Be a GFF [Good Friend Forever]".  Since last May, we've been writing, auditioning, casting, filming, directing, tweaking, editing, producing, and laboring over this enormous project, which will create autism awareness and teach peer acceptance to middle school audiences.  Though it's still not finished, we know it will all come together in time for you to join us at Carroll University in Waukesha, Wis., at the Stackner Ballroom, beginning at 3 p.m. on Sunday, March 27th.  Attire is formal in honor of the 19-member all-student cast who will attend with their families, also seeing their work on the big screen for the first time.  It should be an event to remember!

Space is limited in the venue, so we encourage you to register at your earliest convenience here: http://www.goodfriendinc.com/premiere.html
Each guest needs to have a separate entry.  Seating will be general admission, except for our VIP guests (actors and up to four of their relatives and/or best friends), who will have priority arrangements.  If you are a VIP, please put "VIP" and the correlating actor's first name after your last name in the field.

We have created a Facebook event for this as well: Red Carpet Premiere Party.  While indicating attendance on this Facebook event will NOT automatically include you on the registered guest list, this will be the place we post the latest information as details develop.  So if you're so inclined, you may want to let us know you're coming there, too.

The Autism Society of Southeastern Wisconsin has given a generous $2,000 grant toward the film's production, and The Practical Club (Waukesha) will be a Red Carpet sponsor of the event.  Would you like to know more about sponsorship opportunities for either the film, the event, or both?  Please contact Chelsea Budde, 414-510-0385.

We look forward to seeing you next month!  Feel free to contact Chelsea or Denise with any questions.

Happy New Year!

What will 2011 mean for you and the students in your life?  Will it be a year full of friends and inclusive opportunities in education?  Will you ride out the rest of the school year accepting a certain level of social and/or academic shortcomings in exchange for a relative peace in the classroom?  Would you be surprised to know that research indicates peer support improves both social and academic outcomes for both the student with special education needs and his/her mentor (Carter et al, 2008)?

Good Friend, Inc. is looking forward to all this year has to offer.  We might not have secured that Pepsi Refresh grant, but our middle school film Choosing To Be a Good Friend Forever will still be released this spring.  To date, all research supporting our programs has been anecdotal, but a Wisconsin university will soon undertake a study to prove the effectiveness of both our Peer Sensitivity Workshop and our staff in-service.  (If you want your Waukesha or Jefferson County school included, contact Chelsea Budde.)  And we're getting ready for our 3rd annual Hoa Aloha Autism Awareness Bowling Event on April 3 at New Berlin Bowl.  (Watch our website for online team registration beginning February 1.)

With all things being new again, maybe you're ready to jump in and support our autism awareness-acceptance-empathy™ mission on a whole new level.  If so, check out our opportunities posted at the Volunteer Center's website.  If you are looking to make another kind of contribution, perhaps through membership, check this out and click on the Membership page.

Here's to a year of healthy social relationships!  Let us know how Good Friend can support your school's goals in that regard.  Call Chelsea at 414-510-0385, or Denise at 262-391-1369.

Are you one of our 2,637 Cause members?

This week especially, we are thankful for each one of you! There is strength in numbers. Be counted. 

a non-political vote solicitation

EVERYONE can get behind this candidate!

Please vote daily in November from your phone (text 103636 to 73774) and/or using your email address at the Refresh Everything website.  Our idea is coming up the ranks slowly but surely.  The top 100 vote-getters from the previous month which weren't funded become the next month's top ranked, whereas the new ideas start at the bottom rungs.  Let's show the world we believe in awareness, acceptance, and empathy!