With 2022 wrapping up, so are our in-person events for the year. We had many great events return to our programming this year and are excited to start planning next year.
This year began with a partnership with Adaptive Sports of Ohio in doing a sled hockey clinic and moved into its first fundraiser at Platform Brewery. We hosted an outing at a Cleveland Guardians game and a couple of outings at Blossom Music Center, with the Cleveland Orchestra performing In-Concert specials for Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. And we handed out tickets for Playhouse Theatre shows.
We also held our first annual Handcycle and Picnic in the park. Members gathered in South Mastick Park, grilled hamburgers and hot dogs, played lawn games, and tried out the handcycles that the chapter owns. If you are interested in borrowing a handcycle, please email us at unitedspinalneo@gmail.com. We own 7 handcycles which are a combination of low-riding bikes and upright bikes. If you can transfer (or be assisted with transferring) and transport the handcycle, you can borrow one for 30 days at a time. They are stored in our Storage Unit in Parma, OH, and would need to be picked up and dropped off from there.
Speaking of our storage unit, we have received a flood of donations looking for a good home. These donations, unless otherwise specified, are free to our members on a first-come, first-served basis. We keep our website updated as these donations come in and out, so make sure to bookmark it and regularly check it out. Or, send us an email if you are looking for something specific, and we can see what we can do. You can find all donations on www.usaneo.org/donated-items.
Our last in-person event for the year is coming up soon! On November 19, we will gather at Phunkenship Brewery in Cleveland, OH, for our 3rd Annual A Night of Trivia Fundraiser. This will be the first time having this fundraiser in person, and we are so excited and looking forward to it. This fundraiser is where we bring in the most funds to run our chapter and host so many in-person events. If you have benefited from our chapter in any way, please consider attending to support us. An online raffle will kick off the event on Sunday, November 13, and close at 6 pm on Saturday, November 19, during our trivia event. For more information and to purchase tickets, head to https://events.eventgroove.com/event/A-Night-Of-Trivia-Fundraiser-2022-68143.
We hope to see you at our fundraiser, or on either (or both!) of the last virtual monthly meetings for the year. You can find registration links on www.usaneo.org/calendar for these meetings. Dr. Kim Anderson will present a Summary of her Perspective on Recovery Research Study and ask for our feedback on November 21. After a short guided meditation from Dr. Jackie Stantion, we will have a social hour/holiday party on December 19 to wrap up our year.
We are open to any feedback on how to grow our chapter and better serve this community. If you are in need of any resources, a peer to connect with, or have any general questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us at unitedspinalneo@gmail.com And, please send us any topic you would like to see at a monthly meeting! We look forward to seeing you virtually and hopefully in person in 2023!
