Greetings!
Happy Spring! We hope you are doing well, and enjoying warmer, sunnier days. It is an exciting time for Milestones – we are celebrating our 20th year and there is so much we want to share with you!
We are also very excited to celebrate our 20th Anniversary year by honoring our dedicated founders Ilana Hoffer Skoff and Mia Buchwald Gelles at our Annual Benefit on October 27th. As part of the celebratory year, we will also take the opportunity to recognize our founding partners, board members, foundations and donors like you that have played an important role in helping Milestones become a vital resource in the community.
There are many of you who have loyally supported Milestones long enough to remember our first few conferences. We are so thankful for your continued support of our mission and programs, like the conference, that have grown over the last two decades to bring us to this moment.
As you will see in the newsletter, we recently launched the long-awaited Milestones Autism Planning Tool, a unique one-stop online resource created to help families support their loved ones. And, our annual Strike It Big Your Way event, a fundraiser that directly supports the free autism Helpdesk, is currently in full swing. There is still time to create a team, donate, and/or to join us Sunday, April 3rd, to help us reach our goal and celebrate this year's efforts.
As the world continues to settle into a new "normal," we very much look forward to having more opportunities to safely connect in-person at Milestones events and out in the community this year. In the meantime, please feel free to reach out to us with any questions or just to check in - we would love to hear from you!
With gratitude,
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Maya Holtz Groys
Development Director
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Vanetta Perry
Engagement & Special Events Manager
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Mary Meister
Development Assistant
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The Milestones team is grateful to every individual, team and sponsor who is currently engaging in Strike It Big Your Way. This customizable fundraiser allows our community to participate how they want, from where they want, to raise critical funds for our local autism community. We see your support coming in from near and far, and we thank you!
This event helps fund the Milestones free autism Helpdesk, a service that local parents, professionals and autistic individuals rely on every day to receive resources and guidance to navigate new challenges.
We hope you will continue to help us reach our goal! There's still time to create a fundraiser or donate. Supporters are also invited to join us Sunday, April 3, at Spins Bowl, to conclude the fundraiser!
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Champion Presenting Sponsor |
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To commemorate our 20th anniversary, Milestones Autism Resources is thrilled to share a gift of knowledge with the community — the Milestones Autism Planning (MAP) Tool, a new groundbreaking online resource.
Designed by a team of professionals, parents and autistic individuals, the MAP is a one-stop online resource created to help families support their loved ones in developing life skills, from early childhood through adulthood. Families can search by category or age range to view practical strategies and tips for every age and stage.
With the MAP as a resource, parents and individuals can confidently approach everyday issues, with 24/7 access to information and advice on how to navigate each new step. A special feature of this new tool is a curated, prioritized checklist of adult independent living skills that any parent or caregiver can easily use to support a loved one in their development.
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Special thanks to following generous funders for making the new MAP tool possible:
Lois Joan Davis
The Cleveland Foundation
Community Fund Management Foundation
The Bennett and Donna Yanowitz Family Foundation,
a supporting foundation of the Jewish Federation of Cleveland
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Please join us in welcoming Milestones' newest Board Members |
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Tanzalea (Tanzie) Daniels
Chief Financial Officer, Goodwill Industries of Greater Cleveland and East Central Ohio, Inc.
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Tanzie has an extensive financial background and has served as Director of Finance and Administrative Operations for the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland and prior to that, as the Controller for the Detroit Zoological Society. In 2020, Tanzie was named to the Crain’s Cleveland Business 40 under 40. Tanzie has also participated in Leadership Cleveland and the Rekindle Fellowship’s Black-Jewish Cohort. Tanzie resides in Solon with her husband and four children including her autistic daughter. |
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Dominic Frisina
Partner, Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs
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Dominic is a partner in the business practice group in the intellectual property area. He has more than 15 years of experience as a patent attorney along with nearly a decade working as a chemist, providing him with specialized knowledge of processes and technologies and also intellectual property law. Dominic received his juris doctorate at the University of Louisville, with a Master’s in Chemistry from Johns Hopkins University. He resides in Mayfield Heights with his wife and 3 year old autistic son. |
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Eric Patalinghug
Manager, Services Engineering, Hyland
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Eric’s team is part of Hyland’s Global Services division. Eric’s roles have focused on identifying new areas of opportunity, creating service offerings and work products from sales to product and now in Hyland Global Services. On top of his role managing a team of developers and engineers, Eric is also part of Hyland’s innovation committee where he helps identify and review the next generation of innovations from throughout Hyland. Eric resides in North Ridgeville with his wife, daughter and autistic son. |
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Carmen Roman
Cleveland Clinic/ Lutheran Hospital HR Business Partner
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Carmen is currently an HR Business Partner at the Cleveland Clinic, supporting the Operations Division. She previously supported Lutheran Hospital, Digestive Disease and Surgery Institute, Head & Neck Institute, and Glickman Urology & Kidney Institute, to name some areas. She has experience in Employee/Labor Relations, Policy Administration, Practice Acquisition, and Workforce Planning. She is a former board member of UCP, current co-Business Liaison for Project SEARCH and a champion of hiring differently abled employees. Carmen contributed to the Cleveland Clinic receiving the 2021 Governor’s Inclusive Employer Award. She resides with her husband in Olmsted Township. |
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Carrie Rosenfelt
SVP, Director of Community Lending, Business Banking, Huntington
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Carrie works to drive economic inclusion through access to capital for small business owners in Huntington’s twelve state footprint. Carrie and her team help develop and deliver innovative products and services to support small business growth with a special emphasis on those owned by minorities, women, and veterans. Carrie was recognized as a member of one of American Banker’s Most Powerful Women in Banking ‘Top Teams’ in 2021. Carrie serves on the boards of Towards Employment, Goodwill Industries of Greater Cleveland and East Central Ohio and is a member of the Community Relations Committee at the Jewish Federation. She resides in Shaker Heights with her husband, son and daughter. |
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Matt Slain
21st Century Financial
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Several years ago, Matt broadened the focus of his financial services practice to provide guidance to families who have loved ones with special needs. Through training and conferences, he earned the designation “Trusted Partner for Special Needs Planning”. Currently, he has professional relationships with dozens of families along with several school districts and non-profit organizations, providing workshops and resources. In addition, Matt has a background in government/politics with a Master’s in Public Administration. He resides in Mayfield Heights with his wife and three young children. |
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Support your local community with every purchase.
Remember Milestones by using AmazonSmile!
Visit smile.amazon.com and select Milestones Autism Resources as your charitable organization. The Amazon Smile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the price of eligible purchases to Milestones. It costs you nothing extra to give!
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