Cerebral Palsy

Hope Center research is funded by Hope Happens, an organization originally founded by Chris Hobler and his family before Chris died of ALS in 2005.

Jessie Vonk, wife of Dutch maestro Hans Vonk until his death of ALS in 2004, is a sculptor who designed the Christopher Hobler Spirit of Hope Award.

A resident of Tasmania, Jessie Vonk returns to St.

Louis each spring to participate in an Evening of Hope.

The evening will begin with cocktails at 5:30 pm, followed by dinner at 6:30, presentation of the Christopher Hobler Spirit of Hope Award at 7:15, the concert by Misha Dichter at 8:00 and a reception with the artist at 9:00 pm.

Now in the fourth decade of an illustrious career, Misha Dichter appears with the world's major orchestras, often performing virtuoso compositions of Liszt, Rachmaninoff and Tchaikovsky, as well as music by Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert and Brahms.

Tickets for this enchanted evening are $250 per person and available through Hope Happens at 314.289.5660.

Tickets to attend Misha Dichter’s performance only are available for $20 from Hope Happens or MetroTix at 314.534.1111 (www.metrotix.com).

Sponsorships are available, ranging from $500 Patrons to $10,000 Platinum Sponsors.

Major sponsors for the t...

8 to 16, visits Lima, Cusco and the Sacred Valley of the Incas to hike the Inca Trail, as well as some of the Peruvian children the trip will help.

Equip Kids International, based in Rexdale, is offering the at-cost trip; in return, participants raise hike pledges, not unlike other Canadian-based charity runs or walks, said Dana Corfield, 30, who founded the charity in 2001 when she worked in Peru's only pediatric rehab centre.

"This is an unique and exciting opportunity for people to travel to an exotic destination, hike the infamous Inca Trail at a discounted price, while also learning about international development issues and participating in development projects," Corfield said, adding people often ask about volunteer opportunities after learning about Equip Kids.

Equip Kids is a multi-faceted, registered Canadian charity that teaches non-verbal children to communicate through alternative or augmentative communication (sign language is its most common form), distributes donated wheelchairs and walkers, and focuses on a parent-and-child and family oriented approach, offering support, teaching and encouraging parents to support one another.

All Incan Challenge funds raised go directly to help children with disabilities in Peru, including the opening of a new centre in Cusco, to provide services to more children, including therapy, providing wheelchairs, a resource library and family support groups.

Th...

The current building dates to the 1970s, and its design is not conducive for the needs of the students, Telfer said.

The rooms are separated by make-shift petitions, many are windowless and nearly all are too small, forcing wheelchairs and special equipment into the hallway, and ramps are too steep.

The Kalamazoo Regional Education Service Agency (K-RESA) is asking for the bond.

"We think it's a modest proposal," said K-RESA Superintendent Craig Misner.

The total package would build a new school for the students currently at Croyden Avenue, renovate the building for early child development and young adult education, and renovate K-RESA's service center on Milham Road.

Misner admits times are tough in Michigan, but said this proposal is a chance to stand up for kids who need a helping hand.

"We always need to give back," he said.

"We're always going to have a bond issue.

We're always going to have a need if we want quality of life in terms of taxation." With a 50 percent increase of students in the past six years at Croyden, K-RESA officials said it's time to think to the future.

The Kalamazoo County Taxpayers Association is urging voters to vote No on the tax hike request.

If passed, the average homeowne...