Florissa 5K part of Autism Awareness activities in April

DIXON – Florissa, the children’s division of Kreider Services, is accepting registration for the Florissa 5K road run, which will be Saturday, April 23 at Sauk Valley Community College.

It’s one of several events during April as part of its Autism awareness activities.

Registration forms are available at www.Getmeregistered.com, at www.florissacenter.org or, in person, at Florissa and Kreider Services. Registration is $25 or $30 on race day. There is no cost to join the kids fun run, but registration is encouraged so participants can receive a medal and shirt.

The kids fun run will begin at 8:30 a.m. The 5K run will begin at 9 a.m. The course will be made accessible for strollers, wheelchairs and people with disabilities. All proceeds go to Florissa programs.

Florissa will offer two sessions of its annual Autism training from 6 to 8 p.m. April 7 and from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. April 8 at the Dixon Elks Lodge, 1279 Franklin Grove Road.

The Thursday presentation, “Teaching safety skills to Children with ASD,” is a free event that will help parents determine the safety needs of their children and learn how to teach targeted safety skills using visual support, rules and guidelines, social stories and how to allow children to practice safely as needed.

The Friday workshop, “Autism: Addressing Hygiene, Puberty, Personal Safety, and Sexuality Issues,” costs $50 for professionals and $20 for family members. It will address issues and strategies for teaching and promoting self-care and independence, teaching puberty, emphasizing modesty and privacy, increasing personal safety, reducing fear and confusion and teaching sexuality related issues to children and adults with ASD and related disabilities.

Florissa serves the needs of children from birth to age 18 with social, behavioral, developmental or emotional needs. For information about the presentations, go online to www.florissacenter.org or call Florissa at 815-288-1905.