Anne Abbott, our Keynote Speaker, is an artist who paints with her index finger. Her work is well known in the Toronto Area. Besides being an artist, Anne is also President and Chair of Speaking Differently, an organization for people with communication disabilities. Anne lives in downtown Toronto with her husband Rob and two kittens Hershey and Rascal. Anne will be speaking to us about how the arts have influenced her in living life to the fullest.

Rebecca Beayni is a 23 year old woman who has overcome typical cultural attitudes and has created, along with her family and support circle, an exciting life, working at meaningful jobs in the community, developing wonderful friendships, and planning for her move into her own apartment with friends in 6 months and much more. Her experience with circle building, tools for planning and the ins and outs of individualized support and community building has been helpful to other families and individuals as they plan for their future.

 Susan Beayni graduated from Trinity College, University of Toronto with a BSc. in 1976 and a BEd in 1977. She taught for 3 years in Nigeria and 4 years in Lebanon before returning to Canada. She and her husband are the parents of 2 daughters, Rebecca who is 23 and Nicole who is 20. Because of Rebecca’s special needs, Susan has become an advocate for the inclusion of all individuals as fully participating citizens in society.  Presently Susan works as a Family Facilitator with Bloorview Kids Rehab helping families as they plan for the transition of their youth to the adult world.

Robin Hurd is the mother of four boys, ages 13, 11, and 8(twins). Her eight year old twins have identical physical disabilities, and communicate using AAC. Because of her children’s disabilities, Robin has educated herself about ways to help her sons learn language on their communication devices, and shares what she has learned at conferences internationally. Robin writes monthly columns for the Parent’s Corner at the AAC Institute web site and for SERCH, a NASA Broker. She serves on the board of directors of Always On Our Own, a local self-advocacy group for adults with developmental disabilities.

Rebecca, Susan and Robin will be presenting together on developing the skills to deal with transitions and promote self-advocacy at an early age.

Aleksandar Poposki finished his education as a computer programmer from St. Clair College in 2001. He is currently self-employed. He will be speaking about the successes and challenges in moving from school into the workforce. Aleksandar lives in Toronto with his wife.

Paul Marshall will be moderating the Town Hall Meetings. The topic will be “Living in a Speaking World: Communicating Creatively”. Come prepared to share your thoughts and participate in a lively discussion. Some people, in the past, have found it helpful to pre-programme some of their ideas into their devices.

The band,Thames Valley Train Wreck, came together as a partnership between The Thames Valley Children's Centre and the Wizdom Music Academy in London, Ontario. This partnership brings together the musical expertise of Karl Sloman-Fitzgerald, and the accessibility and therapy expertise of TVCC. Together this team promotes the belief that every person should have the access to music lessons despite living with a disability.

The band plays their instruments through direct and indirect access with a machine called the MidiMate. On Saturday night, they will perform several songs using their unique approach to Rock n' Roll music. Some conference registrants may even get the opportunity to try making music.

Nola Millin is well known in her hometown of Windsor, Ontario for her activism and her public speaking. Nola is experienced in writing and speaking on various topics of disability and use of AAC. She has three degrees; one in Psychology, one in English and Creative Writing and one in Disability Studies. Nola holds a position with ISAAC-International as Editor for news and information for their Information Exchange website. In her spare time, Nola can be found at her church where she is quite involved in many activities.

Al Sunisloe has cerebral palsy and uses a word board to communicate with and a walker for mobility. Now a middle-aged man, Al has experienced trips on his own to Florida, among other places. Last year, he received his Bachelor’s degree in Religious Studies from McMaster University. Al enjoys his computer, bicycle, and Bible study.

Al and Nola will be speaking together on all forms of independence – physical, psychological, emotional.