Advocating for Kansas City's Latino Community of Parents

Parent leader Bertha Aldape is putting what she has learned during the 2022-23 PLTIKC classes into action! She's recently joined the RevEd team as Special Education Family Advocate. She shared her advocacy journey as a mother of a child with autism and her discovery of resources for Kansas City's Latino community of parents.

In 2006 my son was diagnosed with Autism. That was when I started to learn about this condition. I was part of a community support group for parents with special needs children. The program only lasted for a year and ended due to lack of funds to continue. I then began to attend training and conferences that were offered by the Human Development Department of UMKC.

UMKC is where I found the opportunity to volunteer as a Spanish Family Specialist for their Missouri Family to Family program. Currently, I volunteer at Children's Mercy Hospital. I enjoy participating in different events in the community to learn and be able to share information.

During this time I have noticed that children of the Latin community lack the services available to them. Many of the services available are free and do not interfere with the legal status of their parents. All children should have the opportunity to benefit from all the services. We as parents have a need for tools and education about services available in the community as well as obtaining them. Simply not knowing creates a void for services that may be available. Lack of communication is another variable that hinders services reaching this community. Families who are immigrants and unable to express concerns struggle in schools and other institutions.

I can help with the understanding of our community to include more Latin families and to give families the opportunity to advocate for their children. This empowered me to start a support group. Vision Con Amor (Vision With Love) was the support group for Spanish-speaking families of children newly diagnosed with Autism. In this group, we shared experiences and advice to support each other. We would receive presentations from professionals in the grand field of mental disabilities and services. We had the support of our local parish St. Mark’s Catholic Church where we had access to meeting space and childcare. We were able to participate in Autism walks and Christmas parties for the families.

Today I am part of a program (PLTI) Parent Leadership Training Institute where I am receiving training and resources to improve my abilities. I am starting a community project where I will be able to create a non-profit organization to continue a support group for the community. This group will allow families with special needs to interact with other families and available providers. This will help mend the families who need support with the organizations that can provide the support. As well as lending an understanding ear, families with be able to find a guide for every stage of life for these special families.