1.   Letters to your mayor and governor, requesting official FAS Day Proclamation.
2.   Suggested official Proclamations.
3.   Suggested Invitation & flyer/posters.
4.   Suggested Media Releases.
5.   FAS Day Invocation (optional)
6.   Poem, “The Integrity of Hope,” by Michael Kami.(optional)
7.   How to Make a FAS Knot
8.   Copy for FAS Knot Scroll (optional)
9.   Information Table
10. FAS Fact Sheets and Educational Handouts

1.  Letter Requesting Civic or State Proclamation (adapt as required)

(Letterhead with your organization’s name and address)
(Date written)
(Name of Mayor/Governor plus address)
Dear (Name of Mayor or Governor)

I am writing to request that you officially proclaim International Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Awareness Day on September 9, 2000. (Add the following sentence to request for civic proclamation only:) We would also be grateful if you, or one of the (city or town) counsellors  could read this year’s proclamation at our FAS Day breakfast, to be held on September 9 beginning at 8:45  at (location).

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is the leading cause of mental retardation in  the industrialized nations of the world.  FAS is not just a “disease of the week” but a major root cause of numerous expensive social problems.  People with FAS also are at high risk of learning disabilities, early school drop-out, juvenile delinquency, drug addiction and alcoholism, mental illness, crimes against property, vandalism, child and spousal abuse, unemployment and poverty. Some researchers believe that as many as 1 in 100 North Americans are affected with fetal alcohol disorders.  Each year, taxpayers spend $1.9 billion dollars to treat children and adults with diagnosed FAS  (National Institute on Drug Abuse).  The estimated cost to taxpayers for one individual with FAS is $1.4 million for a lifetime of medical and social services (Centers for Disease Control).  In some cases, the costs for just one person could reach $5 million in a lifetime (FAS Community Resource Center).

(About two lines about your organization and what it does.)

Why September 9? On the ninth minute of the ninth hour of the ninth day of the ninth month, international activists are  asking the world to remember that during the nine months of pregnancy, a woman should not drink alcohol.  We also want the world to remember those millions of individuals who will not reach their genetic potential because their mothers drank in pregnancy.

We will be joined by numerous communities across the U.S. and Canada, and around the world.

Our own breakfast event here in (your city or town) will feature (either:)  the premiere of the excellent new Canadian video, Different Directions: Understanding Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, produced by Ontario’s North for the Children and Toronto’s Breaking the Cycle, showing new ways of preventing and understanding FAS.

(OR:) the educational video, "FAS: Everybody's Baby" distributed by Fasstar Enterprises and John Kellerman, a young man with FAS.

The video will be followed by (keynote speaker or panel discussion)

I have enclosed a FASworld Report plus a “FAS Knot,” our symbol of connection around the world.  Also enclosed is a suggested proclamation, which has been used in numerous cities and towns around the world.

Yours truly,
 
 

(Your name and position)

(On a separate sheet, print one of the following proclamations.  Having it written already should speed things up a lot.  Be prepared to track the progress of the proclamation by phone. Phone ahead to find out the name of the appropriate person to send this to, and make friends with this person!)

2.  Proclamations

2a.  Suggested Civic Proclamation

WHEREAS:  children are our most important resource and it is our responsibility to care for, nurture and protect them; and

WHEREAS:  statistics indicate that individuals with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Effects (FAS/E) in (your country) and industrial nations throughout the world, face the risk of mental retardation or learning disabilities, early school drop-out, homelessness, addictiveness, trouble with the law and mental illness; and

WHEREAS:  to reduce the incidence of FAS/E, it is essential that women in pregnancy are provided with support and information; and

WHEREAS:   parents, professionals, individuals living with FAS/E and other people around the world will observe the second International FAS Awareness Day on Sept. 9, 2000, with a Minute of Reflection at 9:09 a.m.

NOW THEREFORE: I, (mayor’s name), Mayor of the (City or Town of _____________) on behalf of __________ City (or Town) Council and the (how many?)  people of  (town or city)  do hereby proclaim September 9, 2000 as  "Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Awareness Day” in the City (or town) of __________.  I encourage everyone to act with compassion and understanding towards those individuals whose lives were affected by alcohol before they were born.

(signed) (mayor’s name),

Mayor
 

2b Suggested State Proclamation

 WHEREAS, healthy children are the most important resource in the great State of (your city or state); and

 WHEREAS, Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is the leading cause of mental retardation in (your city or state), the United States, and all of western civilization; and

 WHEREAS, as many as 1 in every 100 individuals in these United States may be adversely affected by prenatal exposure to alcohol; and

  WHEREAS, Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Effects are a root cause of numerous social disorders, including learning disabilities, juvenile delinquency, school drop-outs, homelessness, unemployment, mental illness, and crime; and

 WHEREAS, economists estimate that each individual with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Effects will cost the U.S. taxpayer nearly two million dollars in his or her lifetime; and

 WHEREAS, people around the world will be observing the second International FAS Day on September 9, 2000, in order that on the ninth day of the ninth month of the year, the world will remember that during the nine months of pregnancy a woman should abstain from alcohol,

 NOW, THEREFORE, I, (governor’s name), Governor of the State of (your state), do hereby proclaim September 9, 2000 as

in (your state), to promote awareness of the effects of prenatal   exposure to alcohol, to increase compassion for those individuals so affected, to minimize further effects, to ensure healthier communities across (your state) in the future.

      IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused to be affixed the Great Seal of the State of (your state)
      ______________________________
      (Governor’s name)
      GOVERNOR

 DONE at the Capitol in (state capital) on this _______ day of      _____________ in the year of Our Lord Two Thousand.

  ATTEST:
      ______________________________
      (Name of Secretary of State)
      Secretary of State

3. The Invitation

(This can be e-mailed, and personalized as much as possible -- e.g., add a note in your own handwriting.)

(Your letterhead and date)

Dear Friend,

In one “Magic Minute,” on September 9, at 9:09 a.m., you can help us begin to change the world.

Please join us for a breakfast video premiere on September 9, at 8:45 a.m., at (location) as we connect with others around the world who will be observing the second annual International Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Awareness Day.

Researchers now believe that as many as 1 in 100 North Americans are struggling with brain damage caused when their mothers consumed alcohol in pregnancy. This means that right here in (city, town, or region) of the (check number of babies born locally each year) 0000 babies born annually, about 00 will never reach the intellectual potential they possessed when they were conceived.

These children will be at high risk of mental retardation or learning disabilities, school drop-out, juvenile delinquency, alcohol or drug addiction, trouble with the law, incarceration, homelessness, and poverty.  Nearly 100% will be diagnosed with mental illness during their lifetimes. Research indicates that each person living with fetal alcohol damage will cost the taxpayers about $2 million in his or her lifetime.

Our FAS Day program will begin with the reading of the civic/(state?) FAS Day proclamation, and then we will join numerous communities in this time zone, in the “Minute of Reflection.”  On the ninth minute of the ninth hour of the ninth day of the ninth month of the first year in this new Millennium, we will ask the world to remember that during the nine months of pregnancy a woman should not consume alcohol.  We also ask the world to remember those individuals who are struggling with the effects of maternal drinking before they were born.

We feel privileged to offer the premiere of the new (either: all-Canadian video, Different Directions: Understanding Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, (24 mins.) (OR) "FAS: Everybody's Baby" (35 mins) distributed by Fasstar Enterprises and John Kellerman, a young man with FAS. It will be followed by (keynote speaker or panel).

By learning more about FAS, you can help us to make a difference. Please RSVP (name and number) before (date), and indicate how many people in your group will be attending.

Yours truly,
(Your name and position)

4a. Suggested Media Release for Canada (should fit on single page):

For Immediate Release

Contact: (contact person’s name)
(contact person’s phone number)
 (use actual date)   (contact person’s e-mail address)

 (Name of your organization) Fights FAS:

International Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Day Video Premiere, Sept. 9

“Our house was in turmoil from the time he got up until the time he fell asleep, probably about ten o’clock – and then I would crawl into bed, totally exhausted, and cry myself to sleep every night because I felt like such a failure,” says Guelph’s Chris Margetson, parent of a son with FAS, in a compelling new Ontario-produced video.

The 25-minute video, “Different Directions: Understanding Fetal Alcohol Syndrome,” will be offered, along with an informal breakfast, when (Name of your organization) marks International FAS Awareness Day on September 9 at 8:45 a.m., at (location), and observes the worldwide “Minute of Reflection” at 9:09 a.m.

“We’ll be joining parents and professionals around the world in building awareness about Fetal Alcohol Syndrome,” says (name and position of spokesperson).  “On this second annual FAS Awareness Day, people from Nunavut to New Zealand will participate. On the ninth minute of the ninth hour of the ninth month, we ask the world to remember that during the nine months of pregnancy, a woman should not drink alcohol.”

(name of your city or town) will be among many Canadian communities to use FAS Day to launch the new video, produced by Ontario’s North for the Children and Toronto’s Breaking the Cycle with the assistance of Health Canada.

The video focuses on two children with FAS and their mothers: 5-year-old Brenda, and her adoptive mother, Kim Meawasige, both of aboriginal ancestry; and young adult Joe and his birth mother Chris Margetson, of non-native background.  Both Meawasige and Margetson work with FAS professionally, and bring to their work compassionate understanding of the struggle faced daily by children with FAS – and their families.

In one of the more touching moments in the video, Meawasige, adoptive mother of four children with FAS/FAE, bursts into tears.  “Knowing how many kids are lost, either killed or living on the street with FAS and FAE, it scares me...One of the reasons I adopted (my children) is because I know that ...no matter how weird our family is, we’re family and we’ll be there for them.”

Following the screening of the video, (what else is on your program?) All are welcome. For more information, call (contact name and number).
 

4a.  Suggested Media Release for U.S. (should fit on single page):

For Immediate Release

Contact: (contact person’s name)
(contact person’s phone number)
 (use actual date)   (contact person’s e-mail address)

 (Name of your organization) Fights FAS:

International Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Day Video Premiere, Sept. 9

The 35-minute video, "FAS: Everybody's Baby" (that focuses on teenagers who struggle with the effects of alcohol in their lives) will be offered, along with an informal breakfast, when (Name of your organization) marks International FAS Awareness Day on September 9 at 8:45 a.m., at (location), and observes the worldwide “Minute of Reflection” at 9:09 a.m.

“We’ll be joining parents and professionals around the world in building awareness about Fetal Alcohol Syndrome,” says (name and position of spokesperson).  “On this second annual FAS Awareness Day, people from Alaska to New Zealand will participate. On the ninth minute of the ninth hour of the ninth month, we ask the world to remember that during the nine months of pregnancy, a woman should not drink alcohol.”

(name of your city or town) will be among many U.S.communities to use FAS Day to launch the new video, produced by the U.S. Dept.of Education.

Promoting zero tolerance for alcohol, tobacco, and drugs during pregnancy, the video is particularly aimed at problem teenagers who are at risk for both unplanned pregnancy and substance abuse. The film concludes with a reflection from adolescents on what parenting is all about, how it begins in the womb, and the responsibilities of the mother and father. “It’s an excellent film for teenagers,” says Teresa Kellerman of Tucson’s FAS Community Resource Centre, “and it will make an impact on viewers of all ages.”

Following the screening of the video, (what else is on your program?) All are welcome. For more information, call( contact name and number).

5.  FAS Day Invocation (optional)

(This beautiful and inclusive prayer was written and delivered by Sister Eileen Power at last year’s Toronto observance, and has been updated for 2000.  It’s freely available for anyone in the world who wants to use it.  If you use it, please credit Sister Eileen Power, and mention that she is a teaching sister of the Congregation of Notre Dame in Toronto.)

by Sr. Eileen Power, CND

O Great Spirit, Creator of the Universe, we gather on the ninth minute of the ninth hour of the ninth day of the ninth month in the first year of the New Millennium.

Our connection with our whole world is made visible in a special way today.  People in every time zone gather, as we gather, to change our world.  By our coming together and our working together, we will make the world better. Accept our prayers with all who are praising you this very moment and with all who will gather today.

As we begin this millennium, we are filled with hope, O Ever-Creating God, that
in the circle of life, in the cosmos, in the womb, in our hearts, your hope goes round, your strength goes round, your power goes round, your love goes round and our hearts and spirits are joined in a new birth.

We gather to intensify our awareness of the fragile beauty of life from the first moment of conception, of the privilege of the nine months of pregnancy, and of our resolve to help all children and adults with fetal substance disorders to lead happier and more fulfilling lives.

All of our words, gestures and hopes of today:
Our silence and our bells,
Our dance and our reflection,
Our words and our drums,
Our children and our knots,
Our lullabies and our resolve,
All of our words, gestures and hopes of today,
Are powerful reminders that life is your gift to us.

May the drumming of our hearts, echoing the drum of the heartbeat of the universe, be the sound of your tender love.  May the knot of our connections be ever firm.

And may this special moment on this special day continue to mark the beginning of change,
for mothers, for fathers, for all children and for those yet-to-be, and for all of us who join in spirit today around this unique planet, so beautiful, so fragile, so large and yet so small.
Together, we are family.

6.  “The Integrity of Hope” (optional)

This is a warm and positive way to end your event, particularly if it is read by a birth mother or person living with FAS/FAE.

The Integrity of Hope
by
Michael Kami, 1993
 

Just as the gentle flutter of a butterfly's wing
Can change the path of a hurricane
So the gentle beat of a child's heart
Can change the destiny of the world.
Children are our future and our hope.
Only they determine humanity's progress.
We must protect all children.
We must feed all children.
We must educate all children.
We must love all children.
They are we and we are they,
In a joint journey to a better future!

7.  How to Make a FAS Knot

“A threefold cord is not quickly broken.”

                                   –The Bible, Ecclesiastes IV, 10
 

In 1999, volunteers from New Zealand and South Africa to Nunavut used the FAS Knot as a symbol of our worldwide campaign to inform the world about Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and related disorders.

This piece of knotted cord was designed in memory of Abel Dorris, 1968-1991, whose brief and poignant life resulted in the groundbreaking 1989 book about Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, The Broken Cord, written by his father, Michael Dorris, 1945-1997.

The broken cord may refer to the umbilical cord, the spinal cord, the nervous system, the cord between the generations, or the cable on an elevator. Michael Dorris wrote that if we back off on our children with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome or Fetal Alcohol Effects,  they will sink like an elevator once the cable is snapped. Ten years after Dorris’s book, a loving community around the world reconnected the broken cord, developing the FAS Knot as our symbol.

 Each knot can be made easily and cheaply in less than a minute. The cord is tied in a square knot, sometimes called a reef knot, the favoured knot for reconnecting a broken line or cord.  The knot is stronger than the cord itself, and cannot be broken or snapped.  You may want to sell the knots for $2-$5, or ask for donations.

Volunteers in the U.S. and Canada generally use an eight-inch piece of 3/16" white cord, available in most hardware stores for a few cents per foot. Volunteers in New Zealand and Germany have made smaller, more discreet FAS Knots, using thinner cord. Make a circle approximately the size of your thumb (possibly smaller if you use a thinner cord), then tie right over left and under; left over right and under. Using a straight pin or safety pin, pin this to your lapel or other garment with the loop above and the knot below.

Step-by-step photos of the FAS Knot may be seen on the website at
www.come-over.to/FASDAY/manual.htm

We have chosen a cord instead of a ribbon, to separate ourselves from all of the other campaigns. We are not just another cause trying to raise money -- we represent those millions of individuals and their families who have gone unrecognized, unidentified, neglected on this continent and throughout the world.

The circle symbolizes the womb, a baby’s head, the human brain, the earth. And we, a planet-size network of people who care about people living with FAS, are the knot that will make them whole. FAS is totally preventable. We must create a society in which everyone recognizes that there is no lower threshold for drinking in pregnancy. Our long-range goal is to rename this small piece of cord,  “The FAS Not!”
 

The FAS Knot was designed by Bonnie Buxton and Brian Philcox, trademark pending. We encourage groups supporting FAS/FAE endeavours to use it for promotion or fund-raising, and ask only that you notify us before doing so.  Write to us at 250 Scarborough Golf Club Road, Toronto, ON M1J 3G8, fax us at (416) 264-8222, or e-mail us at <fasworldcanada@rogers.com

8.  Copy for FAS Knot Scroll (optional)

(You may want to print a one-page sheet, roll it up in a scroll, and tuck each one inside the loop of a FAS Knot.  The sheet can contain information about the program, and also includes this information about the Knot.)

    THE FAS KNOT

This piece of knotted cord was designed in memory of Abel Dorris, 1968-1991, whose brief and poignant life resulted in the groundbreaking 1989 book about Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, “The Broken Cord,” written by his father, Michael Dorris, 1945-1997.
 

 The broken cord may refer to the umbilical cord, the spinal cord, the nervous system, the cord between the generations, or the cable on an elevator. Michael Dorris wrote that if we back off on our children with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome or Fetal Alcohol Effects,  they will sink like an elevator once the cable is snapped.

The circle symbolizes the womb, a baby’s head, the human brain, the earth. And we, a planet-size network of people who care about people living with FAS, are the knot that will make them whole.  FAS is totally preventable. We must create a society in which everyone recognizes that there is no lower threshold for drinking in pregnancy. Our long-range goal is to rename this small piece of cord,  “The FAS Not!”

9.  Information Table

You may want to have an information table, which can include the FAS Knot, a cash box for donations, and relevant local material.

Correctional Service Canada has produced a well-written research report, “Fetal Alcohol Syndrome: Implications for Correctional Service” which  is applicable to most English-speaking countries, and is also available in French. It’s available, free, in bulk, from the Research Branch, Correctional Service of Canada, 340 Laurier Ave. West, Ottawa, ON K1A 0P9, or phone Tina Bada at (613) 996-5222, fax (613)996-2867, <reslib@magi.com>

It is full of facts and figures about FAS/FAE, relating to the lifespan of the affected individual, and includes recommendations for changes in the criminal justice system, taking into account the needs and disabilities of offenders with fetal alcohol disorders.  This report would be particularly useful for members of the media who would like more information on the secondary disabilities of people with FAS, which make them susceptible to getting in trouble with the law.

Your committee might consider making various petitions available, and Bonnie Buxton ogrady@axxent.ca can suggest a number which might be appropriate.  We particularly like a “declaration” for men to fill out, promising to support their wives, partners, sisters, daughters, and friends in sobriety when pregnant. This declaration was developed by the Lakeland FAS Committee, in northern Alberta, Canada. The complete petition form can be downloaded at www.come-over.to/FASDAY/FathersDec.htm

The declaration, in the form of a petition, reads:

“I am aware that alcohol exposure during pregnancy may cause irreversible brain damage to the baby, therefore, I declare that I will support and encourage my partner, friends and family members to be alcohol free during pregnancy.”

There is a file called FASdisk that can be downloaded in its entirety or just selected documents.  The FASdisk can be found at http://come-over.to/FASdisk/

Suggested documents include:
What Is FAS?
FAS FACTS
FAS Characteristics
FAS101Assessment
Resource List
FAS and the Brain
Birth Defects Comparison (Canada)
Birth Defects Comparison (U.S.)
Timelines for FAS
Visible Kid with the Invisible Disabilities
Visible Teen with the Invisible Disabilities
FAS Presentation Notes

Download the entire file of 50+ documents and photos here!

FASworld Toronto
Bonnie Buxton & Brian Philcox
<fasworldcanada@home.com>
416-264-8000? Fax 416-264-8222
www.FASWORLD.COM

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Community Resource Center
Teresa Kellerman
tkellerman@mindspring.com
www.come-over.to/FASCRC