Epilepsy Clubs

Re: Re: Epilepsy Clubs

Submitted by gretchen1 on Thu, 2006-06-08 - 22:18

EFA or Epilepsy Foundation of America has chapters all over the US. If I weren't feeling so cruddy I'd see where they're listed on the web, but they are. I think really just under that name. Each chapter though receives no funding, last I heard, from the main office in Maryland. I know of one woman in Oklahoma that has been trying to raise the $250,000 it takes to start a new chapter, EFA office in her town, for many years. In my state on one side there is an EFA chapter with 2 part time volunteer workers. On the other side of my state there is an office with over 30 employees, many resources, a library I've used, and twice they've loaned me money for AEDs. I've recently joined an Easter Seal Epilepsy support group too. Any group runs as smooth, more successfully if planned and organized by committed informed people, which apparently my chapter is. You might want to call Easter Seals. I'd actually formed my own support group, we were about to have our first meeting when they heard what I'd done, called me. It was easier to join them. I've formed two other support groups in my life and the benefits to me and one of my children with many health problems? It's not measurable. The last one I formed though I couldn't seem to recruit reliable other leaders. I passed the donuts and poured the coffee while everyone else got to hear the guest speakers and gab after. I did the dishes alone too. IOW when I formed this last one that we merged with Easter Seals I first made darn sure there were solid committments by multiple co-leaders. Which can be a lot harder than I somehow ever think should be. Gretchen