Mount Vernon area residents enjoyed one-stop shopping last weekend as 40-plus exhibitors filled Mount Vernon High School's cafeteria with information on everything from Brain Injury Services to blight control and abatement.
The occasion was Mount Vernon Supervisor Gerald Hyland's 17th Annual Town Meeting. In order to accommodate the ever-growing crowd, this year's exhibit opened at 7:45 a.m. — 15 minutes earlier — and remained open after the conclusion of the formal presentations.
There to provide information and answer questions were representatives from a variety of Fairfax County government agencies, non-profit service organizations, health facilities, police and fire, VDOT, tourism sites, legal services, and a wide range of other organizations.
Two groups represented were Brain Injury Services, Inc., and Therapeutic Recreation Services offered by Fairfax County Community and Recreation Services. The former's mission is to aid brain injury victims reestablish their self reliance. The latter is geared to provide "programs for individuals with disabilities," according to their literature.
"Brain Injury Services is a free standing non-profit organization," explained Karen Brown, executive director. "We are one of the first such community-based organization's in the nation."
With their headquarters office in Springfield, the group is active at this time in Richmond seeking to have grant money restored that was cut during the latest budget crunch.
"We went through the budget cuts of 2003 and lost 15 percent of our grant monies," Brown noted. "But, we have regained 75 percent of those funds so far."
On Feb. 4, Brown's group conducted a Brain Injury Awareness session for members of the General Assembly. They also participate in many educational venues, such as Hyland's Town Meeting, to get their message out.
According to their literature, an Acquired Brain Injury (ABI) is "an injury to the brain not of a degenerative or congenital nature that may produce a diminished or alter state of consciousness, which results in impairment of cognitive abilities or physical functioning."
The leading causes of ABI are listed as 44 percent, vehicle crashes; 26 percent, falls; nine percent, non-firearm accidents; eight percent, firearms; and 13 percent, other.
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, "5.3 million Americans live with significant disabilities as a result of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)." It is also the leading cause of death and disability for children and adolescents in the United States, DCD reports.
Further information is available by contacting Brain Injury Services, 8136 Old Keene Mill Road, Suite B 102, Springfield, VA, 22152, Phone: 703-451-8881. Assistance can also be found at Inova Regional Trauma Center, 3300 Gallows Road, Falls Church, VA,22042. According to IHS literature contacts at the Trauma Center are Anna Bradford at 703-698-2295 or Gina North at 703-698-3259.
THERAPEUTIC RECREATION Services uses various program formula "to meet individual interests, needs and abilities of the individuals it serves." Services are developed on three levels that provide "a continuum of leisure development, consumer involvement, and integration into community programs," according to their literature.
"The county is trying to streamline and coordinate services better to cut down on duplication and improve delivery," said Jullie Ellis Senior Center Director, Community and Recreation Services.
Additional information is available through Therapeutic Recreation, Fairfax County Community and Recreation Services, 12011 Government Center Parkway, Suite 1050, Fairfax, VA, 22035 or by calling 703-324-5532. Information is also available on their web page at www.fairfaxcounty.gov/rec.