Join a personal support network through the Texas Network Connections program

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DO YOU WANT TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN SOMEONE’S LIFE, LEARN MORE ABOUT THE EXPERIENCE OF DISABILITY, MEET NEW PEOPLE, AND HAVE FUN? THEN JOIN A PERSONAL NETWORK FOR A UNIQUE ONE OR TWO YEAR VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY!!

TEXAS NETWORK CONNECTIONS, a program of Texas Parent to Parent, helps people with disabilities and their families to develop personal networks and you can be a part of the process!

TEXAS NETWORK CONNECTIONS (TxNC) is looking for people who:

• want to share, learn and grow
• desire an opportunity to get to know a person with a disability and his or her family
• enjoy new experiences & building communities
• like to "think outside the box"
• want to enhance their education

EXPECTATIONS AND OPPORTUNITIES: NETWORK MEMBERS ARE VOLUNTEERS who serve on network for minimum of one year. Service includes:

• attending 3-4 network meetings (two hour meetings) during year
• taking on a small project for the benefit of the network and/or the person at center of network
• sharing your interests with others in network
• helping to replace yourself when you leave the network

WHAT DO NETWORK MEMBERS HAVE TO SAY ABOUT JOINING A PERSONAL NETWORK?

• It’s a great way to put our minds together and think about someone we all care about
• Until I joined a network, I had never had a close relationship with a person with a disability
• I wanted to support my best friend with her younger brother
• I’m meeting people I might not have otherwise ever met...and it’s fun!
• It felt like an honor to be asked to be included in the network
• I like having a defined role in how I can assist a person with a disability

WHAT DO PERSONAL NETWORKS ACCOMPLISH? Personal networks provide a structure of on-going support for a person with a disability, during the course of that person’s life and even after their parents are no longer able to care for them. Personal networks create a circle of friends and family around a person with a disability to expand the number of people who care about him or her. Personal networks also help people with disabilities explore their interests and abilities so they can enjoy them with other people. Through personal networks, people with disabilities who are at risk of isolation will have access to the abundance of caring, supportive people and groups in their families and communities, thus enriching the lives of the person, the family, and the community.

For more information about Texas Network Connections personal networks:

• http://txp2p.org/parents/TexasNetworkConnections.html
• http://txp2p.org/parents/PersonalNetworks_video.html