Capital Region Cares Capital Region Cares 2018-2019 | Page 105

F
for special education from birth to the
age of 26, though they offer additional
programs for families with adult chil-
dren well beyond that range.
“Whether someone with special
needs is 2 or 75, they should have a
voice like the rest of us. They should
have choices,” says Executive Director
Kelly Young.
“It’s a place of
belonging. Community
is really big for us.”
— Kelly Young, executive director,
WarmLine Family Resource Center
Today, WarmLine now helps about
2,000 parents, students and profession-
als every year in Sacramento County
and 26 additional counties. Funding for
the programs comes from a variety of
sources, including grants from state and
federal entities. The majority of Warm-
Line’s funding, however, comes from
the George and Lena Valente Founda-
tion, says Young. The Sibling Workshop
is funded by this foundation. “It’s a
place of belonging,” Young says. “Com-
munity is really big for us.”
That sense of community stuck
with Pena after attending the work-

shop geared to siblings of people with
disabilities. Certain activities struck a
chord, such as the My Special Dreams
activity, during which children drew
their dreams for their own future on
one side of a paper and their dreams for
their sibling with special needs on the
other. She also enjoyed Dear Blabby, in
which children read through a made-up
situation in an advice column format
where a sibling of someone with special
needs asks for advice on a situation. The
children in the Siblings Workshop work
through the example together, offering
their unique take on the scenario and
how they would handle the situation.
All of the activities aim to create a sense
of community among siblings of people
with special needs.
Today Pena is a facilitator for the sib-
ling program, and her youngest sister is
going through the workshops.
“More than anything, it gives the
children a sense of something familiar,”
Pena says. “A lot of kids have a hard time
coping with the new disability of their
sibling. It’s not only new to the parents;
it’s also new to the other siblings.” n
ILIE
or Jasmine Pena, having a sister with
Down syndrome was not something
she felt she could talk about with just
anyone.
It wasn’t until she attended a work-
shop offered by the Sacramento-based
WarmLine Family Resource Center, in
partnership with the MIND Institute, that
she met other people who had siblings
with disabilities and became more open
within this safe space. During the work-
shop, siblings have time to play together
and work through activities. The children
are offered a space to explore their expe-
riences as a sibling of someone with spe-
cial needs during the workshops. The goal
with the activities is to create a commu-
nity based on understanding for those in
a family with someone with special needs.
“Your friends may or may not know
someone with special needs,” Pena says.
“Knowing there is someone else out there
with a similar situation — it’s a way for
them to express their feelings, what’s on
their mind and their concerns.”
The organization started as a sup-
port group founded by parents of chil-
dren with special needs and gained its
501(c)(3) status in 1997. WarmLine Fam-
ily Resource Center has since evolved
to help these families navigate special
needs education services and health
care institutions through free support,
training and consultations. As a Parent
Training Information Center, WarmLine
provides training to parents and youth
Lillie Apostolos lives in Sacramento,
where she writes about fresh produce,
arts, culture and the local economy. She
enjoys hiking the Sierra Nevada, read-
ing and amateur gardening. On Twitter
@LillieApostolos.
comstocksmag.com | 2018-19 CAPITAL REGION CARES
105