Relationships

101 Ways to Make Friends

The 101 Ways web site is filled with great ideas for helping people who experience disabilities to broaden and expand their relationships. Check out this great site and order copies of the book of the same name today!

http://101friends.wordpress.com/

Pat Amos

Pat Amos has written a provocative piece regarding the importance of relationships in our discussion of positive behavioral supports. Entitled, "New Considerations in the Prevention of Aversives, Restraint, and Seclusion: Incorporating the Role of Relationships Into an Ecological Perspective" is must reading for anyone interested in limiting the dangerous use of restrictive practices.  Research and Practice for Persons with Severe Disabilities (2004, Vol. 29. No. 4, 263-272).  To become a member of TASH and subscribe to the TASH Journal, click here.

Arc's Question and Answer Sheet on Friendships

Zana Marie Lutfiyya, from the Center on Human Policy, has written a clear and helpful question and answer sheet on why friendships are important to people who experience disabilities.  Available as a PDF file by clicking here.

Carolyn Bowling and Jeffrey Wilder

Ya Got People: Helping people with developmental disabilities deal with grief, bereavement and loss is written is an important contribution to anyone who has ever helped another to deal with a broken heart.  At the encouragement of David Hingsberger, Virginia authors Carolyn Bowling and Jeffrey Wilder set out to write a practical and insightful text for us all..  You can order the book from Diverse City Press.

Larry Brendtro,  Martin Brokenleg, and Steve Van Bokern

Larry Brendtro, Martin Brokenleg, and Steve Van Bokern's book Reclaiming Youth At Risk is a fabulous primer for people who care about helping adolescents.   Based on conversations with native American elders, this book is a clear and concise description of why so many youth are struggling from a lack of belonging, and what our communities can do about it.

You can order the book online at  SolutionTree.com.

Barbara Buswell, C.F. Schaffner, and Alison Seyler

Opening Doors: Connecting Students to Curriculum, Classmates, and Learning (1999) is a helpful resource for anyone who wants to help kids to make friends and find success in their neighborhood schools. You can order the guide from The Peak Parent Center, Inc., 611 N. Weber, Suite 200, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80903.  Call for a catalogue of available publications 1-800-284-0251.  Visit the Peak Parent Center web site by clicking here.

Chicago Neighbors Project

The Neighbors Project is a growing movement of people living in cities who want to connect their diverse neighbors to improve the neighborhood for everyone.  I really like their concrete suggestions for meeting your neighbors provided in their checklist.  Check out this great site.

Mary Ellen Copeland

Mary Ellen Copeland has written an extremely helpful book for "developing and maintaining lasting connections."  While not disability-specific, The Loneliness Workbook can be a valuable tool for those who support people who are lonely, or for people who are themselves lonely.  Available in many bookstores or from one of the online outlets such as  Amazon.com or Powells.com or Half.com   

Doug Fisher, Caren Sax, and Ian Pumpian

As kids get older, it can get tougher to help them to make connections, particularly in the middle and high school years.   Inclusive High Schools (1999) provides lots of helpful information to folks who want to make inclusion real for students entering what may be the last years of their school careers.  You can order the book from The Peak Parent Center, Inc., 611 N. Weber, Suite 200, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80903.  Call for a catalogue of available publications 1-800-284-0251.  Visit the Peak Parent Center web site by clicking here.

Sharon Getz and Diana Ploof

Sharon Getz and Dianna Ploof have assembled a wonderful collection of stories about relationships and community from the newsletter, The Common Thread. 

Getz, S. & Ploof, D. (1999). The Common Thread: A collection of writings about friendships, relationships, and community life. Harrisburg, PA: Pennsylvania Developmental Disabilities Council.

Copies can be obtained through the PA DD Council, Room 559 Forum Building, Commonwealth Avenue, Harrisburg, PA 17120. Toll free 1-877-685-4452.

Mike Green, Henry Moore and John O'Brien

A helpful resource for anyone hoping to connect folks who experience disabilities to the larger community.  From the forward by John McKnight: "Citizens are, of course, the producers of democracy. And strong local communities are created when citizens are also the producers of the future.  They cannot be replaced.  No professional, institution, business or government can substitute for the power, creativity or relevance of productive local citizens.  That is why Asset Based Community Development is, in practice, citizen-centered community building."

Green, M., Moore, H. & O'Brien, J. (2006). When People Care Enough to Act: Asset Based Community Development. Toronto: Inclusion Press.

Available through the Inclusion Press.

Brent Hafren, Keith Karren, Katheryn Frandsen, and N. Lee Smith

Check out Hafren and colleague's book Mind/Body Health: The Effects of Attitudes, Emotions and Relationships.   It's full of reasons why building relationships will always trump interventions and billable services.  Be sure to check out the chapters on loneliness and social support and their impact on health and well-being.

Hafren, B.Q., Karren, K.J., Frandsen, K.J., Smith, N.L. (1996). Mind/Body Health: The Effects of Attitudes, Emotions, and Relationships. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

You can order a copy of this book through Dean/Ross Associates, 523 Orchard Drive, Monmouth, Oregon 97361. Phone: 503/606-9678 FAX: 503/606-0970. Ask for a complete listing of their titles!

Ned Hallowell

From the author of Driven to Distraction comes a great book about the importance of relationships in our lives -- Connect: 12 Vital Ties That Open Your Heart, Lengthen Your Life, a Deepen Your Soul.  A wonderful read with lots of helpful ideas for developing relationships and why it's important. Includes a lot of science about why relationships are so important, without bogging the reader down in unnecessary details.

Hallowell, N. (1999). Connect: 12 Vital Ties That Open Your Heart, Lengthen Your Life, And Deepen Your Soul. New York: Pantheon Books.  Available in many bookstores or from one of the online outlets such as  Amazon.com or Powells.com or Half.com



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