10th Annual Because I Care Community Resource Fair October 13, 2012

The Fair was a tremendous success!  Thank you to all of our sponsors, speakers, exhibitors, student volunteers, and participants.  We hope to see everyone again next year!

Educational Workshops and Health Fair designed for caregivers, their families and the people they love and care for.

This year's event will coincide with the Open House and Bar-B-Q for the San Marcos Fire Department.  Bring the entire family for fun-filled day!

Keynote Speakers: Renee and Mike Bondi

At age 29, Renée Bondi was engaged to be married.  She had a beautiful singing voice, a thriving career as a music teacher and a loving family. But then one night a bizarre accident injured her spine and left her quadriplegic. Her life changed forever. Renée lost not only all use of her hands and legs, but also her singing voice — she could barely speak above a whisper. Unwilling to accept the fact that her life was over, Renée searched her heart and continued to persevere.  By sharing her profound and victorious story that includes paralysis and a life confined to a wheelchair, Renée is able to inspire and give hope to others.  Renée and her husband, Mike, have been dealing with caregiving issues for over 20 years.  Together, they will share their challenges and joys in the context of a caregiving relationship.

Renée Bondi is a popular speaker and recording artist who has shared the stage with notables such as Point of Grace, Sandy Patti, Tony Melendez and Larry King. Among her awards and honors is Woman of the Year from the California State Senate and recognition for Outstanding Service to the Community from the U.S. House of Representatives. Renée has released six inspirational CDs, has written a book telling her story (The Last Dance but Not the Last Song - My Story) with another book to be released this fall.

When?

Saturday, October 13th, 2012 from 10am to 2pm.

Where?

San Marcos Senior Center 111 Richmar Avenue, San Marcos, CA

The purpose of the Because I Care Community Resource Fair is to raise awareness of and garner support for individuals who provide care to family members including children, young adults and aging adults.  Caregivers are those individuals who provide assistance to family members when mental or physical health, or aging challenges make it difficult for them to care for themselves.  However, caregivers often neglect their own health and needs.  We can't expect to be able to help our loved ones if we don't take care of ourselves. We are committed to providing a free forum for family caregivers to obtain the information they need to care for their loved ones in a healthy, supportive and rewarding way. 

It is our goal to give the community an outlet to see the services available to families to enrich their lives and to work together towards greater coordination of community agencies in meeting the needs of all residents.   Come to find helpful information, resources, and  contacts to make your family's life a little easier. Bring the whole family for a fun and education filled day that will bring your family closer together.

The flyer contains information about speakers and topics in addition to the day's events. You can also download the speaker schedule for the event.

Activities include:

• Resource Fair featuring North County resources (Outdoors)
• Local Vendors (Outdoors)
• Activities for kids -- jumpies and balloons
  
• Educational Workshops focused on healthy living and support for Family Caregivers (Indoors)
• FREE Blood pressure screenings
• FREE Dental Screenings 
• "Meet the Pharmacist" -- bring your medications for a FREE evaluation by a pharmacist

Fire Department activities include:

• Fingerprinting for the kids
• Tours of the Fire Station
• Fire fighting demonstrations
  
• Firefigher's Bar-B-Q

For more information, call (760) 744-5535 or email Georganne Grotey, Senior Center Director.  If you would like to be a sponsor or an exhibitor for the event, please complete the application form, or contact Georganne Grotey if you have questions.  Deadline for exhibitor applications is September 15th, 2012.

We would like to thank our generous sponsors for making this event possible:

This free event is brought to the community through the collaborative efforts of:

Thank you to our CSUSM students for your overwhelming response to our request for volunteers!  At this time the volunteer positions have been filled. 

The Psychology Department will be looking for energetic students to help us to plan the 20th Annual Psychology Students Research Fair to be held on Friday, April 19th, 2013.  If you are interested in working on the celebration, please check back this website in the next couple of weeks for more information.