August, 2010

Please plan on attending the 2010 FAAN Walk for Food Allergy on August 21, 2010 at the White River State Park in Indianapolis. Registration begins at 9 AM and the walk begins at 10AM. Please register at www.foodallergywalk.org. The local Indianapolis chair, Lisa Susemichel needs help, so please contact us if you would like to help with walk activities.

Also, the next southside support group meeting will be at Sammy's Pizza at 6pm Tuesday August 17.  Remember that Sammy's is a food allergy friendly restaurant so you are welcome to bring your kids:)  The addresss is 997 E County Line Rd, Greenwood IN and is located in a strip mall on the southwest corner of County Line Rd and Emerson in Greenwood very close to exit 101 on Interstate 65.    

Many of you have been meeting with your children's teachers regarding their food allergies. To date, over 350 teachers, daycare providers, camp counselors, and family members have been provided the Protect Allergic Children training at no charge. If you would like your child's school or daycare to receive this training, please contact trishamaled@yahoo.com for more information.

March 28, 2010

Thanks to Dr. Leickly for speaking at our March Support Group meeting. If you'd like to read a summary of his presentation, please visit www.leicklystory.com. 

Is your child going to camp?  Do you want the camp to receive the Protect Allergic Children camp training? If so, please contact us on the contact us page. The YMCA of Greater Indianapolis Site Directors and the Carmel Clay Summer Camp staff will recieve the PAC training this spring!  Until there is a cure, education is key to keeping food allergic children safe! 

Did you know that there is a free camp for children with severe food allergies? Check out www.courageouskids.org for more information. 

Some of us have started re-filling our epi-pens and have noticed that they have changed. Please be sure to train all family members, school, babysitters, etc. on this new epi-pen design. 

March 9, 2010

Please join us on Tuesday, March 16th at the Greenwood Public Library at 6PM for Dr. Frederick Leickly. Dr. Leickly will be speaking about hot food allergy topics. 

The northside group will not be meeting in April. Please join them for the monthly May meeting on the 1st Monday in May. 

Do you have a speaker or topic idea. Please contact us in the contact us page. 

Do you want your camp, school, or daycare to receive the Protect Allergic Children Program training? Please see www.ellfoundation.org for more information. There have already been several childcare centers, families, babysitters, and schools already received this wonderful training at no cost to them! 

December 6, 2009

I hope everyone had a safe and Happy Thanksgiving!  Please join us for the annual southside Food Allergy Support Group Holiday Party. The party will be on Saturday, December 19th from 2:30-4:30PM at the Greenwood Public Library. Please RSVP by December 12th!  Santa will be making a special visit to see all of the wonderful children! 

Have you checked out FAAN's new website?  Did you know they are having a holiday auction? Check out the items for bid at www.faanauction.cmarket.com. 

Do you want the FAAN Walk for Food Allergy to occur in 2010?  If so, they need leadership. As of today, no one has stepped up to take on this wonderful event. Please consider helping out with the 2010 FAAN Walk for Food Allergy. 

Does your school/daycare/church/camp need formalized training on food allergies? Did you know that we have a local mom that is a certified Protect Allergic Children Consultant through the ELL foundation (www.ellfoundation.org)?  Please contact us for more information on how to get your child's organization trained on becoming food allergy smart. 

Have a happy and safe Holiday Season! 


November 9, 2009

Did you know that EpiPen is changing their auto-injectors?  It will be available in pharmacies in December. The southside group is currently in contacts with having the Indianapolis DEY representative speak to our group soon about the new epipen. You can check out the new epipen here http://www.epipen.com/pdf/EP9532_TEARSHEET_DR.pdf.  Check the calendar for updates! 

Please contact us if you would like to join our group or get involved!

October 30, 2009

Happy Halloween All!!  Halloween can be stressful with our children that have food allergies. However, if you take extra precaution, it can still be a fun filled night for all.  In my house, we are giving out non-food items as probably several of you are.  We've also educated our food allergic child that trick or treating isn't just about candy. It is about having fun, getting dressed up in a fun costume, and being silly with family and friends!  I hope you and your family have a SAFE and Happy Halloween.

A Fall Food Allergy Party has been planned for Saturday, November 21st at 10:30AM. The Peewinkle's Puppets will present "Winter Festivals Around the World".  Please visit the website at http://www.nashvilleindiana.com/puppets/puppets2.html to learn more information.  Please email us on the contact us page if you would like to attend.   

October 2, 2009

Happy Fall! If you missed the "I'm Allergic to My World" special on Nick News, please click here:  http://www.nick.com/videos/clip/nick-news-allergic-to-my-world-full-episode.html 

This is a great 22 minute special that was featured on September 27th on Nickelodean News.  The video shows the many challenges children face that live everyday with life threatening food allergies and asthma.  The Indianapolis walk was featured on the program as well! 

Do you want your school or daycare to be trained in Food Allergy Smarts? Please contact us on the contact us page and your school or daycare could receive extremely beneficial training from Protect Allergic Children's, Food Allergy Smart program.  Check out www.ellfoundation.org for more information on the Protect Allergic Children program! 


September 3, 2009

Over $45,000 raised by Indianapolis walk teams and sponsors! Way to Go Indy! 

If you weren't able to make it to the 2009 FAAN Walk this year, we will be posting pictures shortly. The morning was filled with over 650 walkers coming together.  We had a great morning with kids laughing in the bouncehouse, little ones dancing to their favorite music, sponsors giving away lots of allergen friendly goodies, and Radio Disney jamming with the kids.  Thanks to everyone who donated, volunteered, sponsored, and walked at the '09 FAAN Walk for Food Allergy - Moving Towards a Cure! 

Would you like to be more involved in the food allergy support group on the southside? We will be having our first annual plan the year meeting on September 15th at 6:30pm.  Please come with your ideas for meetings and events for the kids.  In order for the group to continue to thrive, we need your input and your feedback on what you like and what you would like to see in the future.  We will be posting the calendar for the next year this month so you can have plenty of time to plan ahead. 

Food allergies are life-altering but we are here for each other!  Parents of children that have food allergies sometimes tend to feel alone especially when friends and family members do not experience the daily challenges we have. If you are newly diagnosed or new to our group, please feel free to contact us on the contact page at anytime. We are here to help! 


August 18, 2009

The FAAN Walk for Food Allergy - Moving Toward a Cure is this Saturday, August 22nd at White River State Park.   Registration is at 9AM and the walk starts at 10AM. Activities will run from 9AM until 1PM. Registration can be completed online at www.foodallergywalk.org! Please join us for this wonderful event that raises awareness and funds for food allergy research!

Is your child with food allergies going to school soon or has already started? Dealing with food allergies in schools can be challenging and overwhelming. There are a lot of anxieties and concerns when sending a food allergic child to school, daycare, camp, or anywhere that is not at home. There are lots of resources to prepare you and your child in dealing with schools regarding the children's food allergies.  FAAN's website at www.foodallergy.org and Food Allergy Smart's website at www.foodallergysmart.org are two groups that provide additional information for handling food allergies in schools. They both provide free downloads that can help in talking with teachers about food allergies. 

August 16,2009

Silent Auction Items Available at the FAAN Walk for Food Allergy on August 22, 2009

• 20 booklets of 50 coupons for a FREE box of Van's Waffles, Pancakes, or French Toast Sticks
• 5 Gallon Bucket of Divvies Popcorn (nut, dairy, and egg free)
• Several brownies and cookies from Ener-G
• Gift Basket from Pamela's Products
• Several Baskets of Cookies from Pamela's Products
• Moxy Sportswear Package
• 4 Tickets to the Eitlejorg Museum
• 4 Tickets to the Indianapolis Indians
• Pacers T-shirt and Hat
• $25 McDonalds Gift Card
• Funky Monkey Gift Basket
• Free Whitening Certificate from Paradox Dental
• 2 Free Subscriptions to Allergic Living Magazine

August 11, 2009

Did you know that the 2009 FAAN Walk for Food Allergy is less than 2 weeks away? Please go to www.foodallergywalk.org and register your team. The walk is on August 22, 2009.  Please be sure to bring cash or check payable to FAAN for our silent auction tables. We will have several items up for bid including several hundred coupons for a free box of Van's waffles or pancakes. All money raised will benefit FAAN's efforts in food allergies. 

I recently attended the Protect Allergic Children Consultant Training program in Chicago. It was an empowering session and I can't wait for our local schools to become Food Allergy Smart. Please check out www.ellfoundation.org and www.foodallergysmart.org for more information. I will also be speaking about this program at the August southside support group meeting.  If you have a child starting school soon, please check out www.foodallergysmart.org for some great downloads. 




July 7, 2009

We hope everyone had a safe and happy 4th of July!  Just a reminder that the 2009 Indianapolis FAAN Walk for Food Allergy - Moving Toward a Cure is next month. The walk will be on Saturday, August 22, 2009 at 10AM at White River State Park.  This will be the 3rd annual Walk for Food Allergy in Indianapolis. Last year, there were over 600 registered walkers and we are expecting many more this year.

The walk will be a great event for all families especially those affected with food allergies. Please register your team or join an existing team at www.foodallergywalk.org.  Below are a list of some of the sponsors and vendors that will be at the Indianapolis walk:

• Peanut Free Planet - DJ Check-It and caricactures will be done for free!
• Whole Foods Market
• Ecoff Motorsports
• Radio Disney
• DEY
• Sunbutter
• TwinJet
• 1st Choice Realty Group - Elaine Wilhelm
• Dr. Mark Holbreich
• Dr. Chris Galloway
• Raffle table with lots of giveaways
• Bouncehouse
• DJ Don Byrd
• And MUCH MUCH MORE!!! 

June 17, 2009

We have really had some exciting events happen over the past few weeks.  We were honored to meet Dr. Leickly from Riley Children's Hospital at our monthly meeting. Dr. Leickly spoke on food challenges.  His expertise and willingess to speak to our group was very much appreciated. 

He provided insight into his food challenges for food allergic patients as well as the procedures he follows for food challenges. He does not do food challenges on children under the age of 5.  He provided his results over the past 3 years, which were very encouraging for wheat, milk, and soy allergies.  2/3 of patients passed the milk allergy.  This was very encouraging to all of us who have children with food allergies.

We also had a cooking demonstration at Clark Appliance. Chef Ben provided a delicious allergen free meal that was both delicous and will be fun to make for our kids. The pineapple dessert was the biggest hit. 

As always, the FAAN Walk for Food Allergy is coming along. The walk is 2 months away and the walk committee members get more excited each day. We hope you will form a team on www.foodallergywalk.org to support this great event!  Let us know if you are interested in volunteering.