LDAK FALL 2020 Update
OCTOBER 2020
Like many community organizations, LDAK experienced significant impacts from the onset of Covid-19 and related public health responses.
On the down side, in April we lost most of the funding that supports our day to day program delivery and faced the challenge of maintaining our supports to the community during a time of increased need for information on the part of families and students.
However, the timing of all of this proved to be beneficial to LDAK at the macro level, as it forced us to move on decisions that had been under discussion for some time regarding balancing generally declining income coupled with increasing demand.
The upside was that in response to the immediacy of Covid-19 pressures, the Board moved quickly to close our resource centre and transition to operating in a virtual environment.
We had to cancel our summer camps program but were able, with the support of the camps funder, the Community Foundation of Kingston and Area, to redirect that funding to hiring two contract professionals to develop and implement online outreach programming. These staff joined LDAK at the beginning of October and are up and running organizing a series of webinars, an online parent/family support forum, and our annual Speak Up for Ability conference to be held as a virtual event.
The resumption in August of funding from the Community Spirit Gaming Centre means that we can make plans for the coming year and our new initiatives. We want to express our appreciation to both funders for helping us to continue to fulfill our mandate of service to the community and to become a more vibrant organization. Our call for support in the spring led to an increase in donations from individuals and organizations, new volunteers, and new Board members, enriching LDAK with new energy and ideas.
October is LD Awareness Month. The parent/family online forum will be initiated in October and the first of our new series of webinars will also be offered as part of the program. Watch our website and social media posts for news and information about LDAK..