Happy New Year.  Wishing you and your families a year filled with peace, health and happiness.

Welcome to the BCSS CAPE Resource Center.  The Center serves the special needs community by providing access to information, resources, services, educational opportunities, and referrals.  Learn about the many features, services and benefits that the Center brings to the special needs community.  We have some very exciting upcoming parent and professional workshops scheduled for this year.

Don’t miss our Support Coordinators Meet and Greet on January 10, 2019. Nkecki Ugoli from DDD will update us on changes to DDD and families will have an opportunity to meet a variety of Support Coordination agencies serving Bergen County.  If you are a parent of a young adult who is graduating in 2018 or 2019 and transitioning to adult services, you will not want to miss this.  On January 31^st, we will again co-sponsor with the Arc of Bergen and Passaic the Adult Day Services Meet and Greet/Vendor Fair.  You will have the opportunity to speak with representatives of Adult Day Programs in Bergen County and the surrounding area and see what adult services have to offer even if your young adult is working.  On March 14^th our ever popular Summer 2019 Special Needs Camp and Recreation Expo will be held with local as well as out-of-state camps. Camps serve children, teens and adults!

As always, our Parent-to-Parent Exchange usually meets monthly on the 2nd Tuesday at 7pm. Our next meeting is January 8th with subsequent meetings on February 12^th, March 12^th, April 19^h, May 9^th, and June 14th.  These monthly parent support meetings are geared to parents with youth 14 years and older, who have developmental and other disabilities. Doreen Moran leads the group and she wears the hat of both professional in the field and parent of two young adults with disabilities. Hope you can participate - drop in when you can.

You can register at https://cape.bergen.org for these and other FREE workshops throughout the year.

The BCSS CAPE Resource Center serves as a...

A hub for educators, community members and individuals living and working in and around Bergen County to locate services and resources for those with developmental and other disabilities;

We offer...

Resource Coordination/Information

• Resource coordination includes intake as well as referral to the system of services and educational resources in Bergen County and the surrounding communities.
• Educational materials, such as fact sheets, journal articles, publications, directories, etc., on topics related to people with disabilities;

Educational Workshops (Areas of interest include…)

• Transition Planning
• Parenting Skills
• Guardianship/Estate Planning/Special Needs Trusts
• Housing Options
• Monthly Parent Support Groups
  • Monthly Aspen Dads Groups
  • Monthly Parent Support Group for parents/caregivers with youth 14 yrs. and older

Linda Wieseneck, Director, is available to answer questions and to provide consultation and support regarding special services and community resource options.  Follow up ensures quality of services.