The annual summer-camp Parent Panic is now in full swing.
Besides facing the difficult problem of finding the proper program to accommodate your child's disability, there is also calculating in family vacations, parent work schedules, drop-off/pickup times and the expenses of keeping kids safe and involved over a long season.
To keep costs reasonable, here are a few tips to keep in mind:
Always ask about camp scholarships. Check with your desired camp, your local Lions Club, Rotary Club, local community groups and city and state disability programs. Ask about discounts for referring a friend. Offer a skill or service for a discount or even free tuition. Can you teach swimming, CPR, arts and crafts, web design, a sport or obtain equipment and supplies for your chosen program? Attend in late summer. Many families take vacations around this time, and camps have a harder time filling their bunks. Have a fund-raising project such as a garage sale.
I hope these tips help you chip away at some of the costs and get your child into the program of your choice. Sharon Marie
Do not let Deval Patrick cut $78 million from the DMR's budget. And unless a whole lot of us a make a whole lot of noise, our Governor and his administration will make this next chop to the DMR's budget on July 1st, which is the beginning of fiscal year 2010. And, according to the ARC of Central Massachusetts, the State of Massachusetts can place Federal Medicaid dollars into the General Fund. That menas Medicaid re-imbursement increases can be used for other areas of the state budget instead of the family supports they are intended for.
Well it's our money too. And we have the right to tell our local legislators how we want our hard-earned Massachusetts tax payer dollars spent.
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Always ask about camp scholarships. Check with your desired camp, your local Lions Club, Rotary Club, local community groups and city and state disability programs. 
