Schwartz Center for Children Hosts Perkins School for the Blind Satellite Group

(New Bedford, MA) – (2/28/08) –Each Monday morning Mara Evans and Christine Reilly, teachers from the Perkins school for the Blind, arrive at the Schwartz Center for Children to host an innovative integrated educational partnership program with the Schwartz Center for Children.

Tom Miller, of the Perkins School, states “that Perkins has been trying to establish satellite groups throughout the region as the distance to travel to Perkins can be extremely prohibitive to getting families from throughout the state involved in the care of their children.” 

Sharon Costa Smith, Early Intervention Director from the Schwartz Center for Children states that “this group is a unique and strong partnership between Perkins, the Schwartz Center, the Kennedy Donovan Center and Gymbore Clothing store.”  Ms. Costa Smith further states that “although this group focuses on children with visual conditions, it is integrated and open to the general community.

This Monday group, held between 10 a.m. – 12 noon for 8 weeks, allows children with visual conditions to connect with each other and for their parents to connect with one another.  In a very interactive group setting, parents receive information about their child’s visual impairment and other specialized topics and are able to talk as peers about the issues that they face.

At 11 a.m., Ms. Lee Medeiros from Gymbore, joins the group and leads an interactive musical session for these children.  Each week focuses on a particular era of music (.e. Polka, Big Band, etc.) nd allows the children to feel the rhythm of the music using various musical instruments and types of movement.

The Schwartz Center for Children is a non-profit agency established in 1947 by parents seeking services for their children and is the only free-standing pediatric rehabilitation clinic in New England.  Since its founding, the Center has continued to grow to meet the needs of children through the Southcoast area.  Its four major programs include Early Intervention, Private Day School, an Outpatient Rehabilitation Program, and a Regional Consultation Program.

The Schwartz Center’s mission is to help children reach their greatest potential.  It is able to do this through strong community support from private contributions, fundraising events, and the United Way of Greater New Bedford.

For more information about the group, contact Sharon Costa Smith at the Schwartz Center for Children at (508) 996-3391.

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