LOCAL EVENTS

BY CHRISTIA WOODFORD

Note: Don’t forget to apply for the Access Pass! The Access Pass Program allows families that meet the specific requirements listed below to visit The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis and all participating locations for $2 per family member per visit for up to two adults and all dependent youths living in the household. You qualify if you receive:

• Hoosier Healthwise Insurance (Indiana’s health care program for low-income families, pregnant women and children)

• SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program)

• TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families)

• Apply here: https://www. childrensmuseum.org/visit/ hours/access-pass.

Museums

The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis WinterFaire

WinterFaire is a magical indoor world featuring a festive, carnivallike atmosphere, fun-filled games, loveable critters, and hands-on activities. Play, laugh, and make lifelong memories together in this oneof-a-kind indoor winter experience.

Zoom down WinterSlide

The animals of WinterFaire have used the frozen fountain’s magical water to turn the beloved slide in the Sunburst Atrium into the icy WinterSlide! The “snow” on either side will light up as you race toward the bottom. How fast will you go?

Various Events

Feb.1 through Feb. 29 Opens at 10 AM 3000 N. Meridian St., Indianapolis, IN 46208, 317-334-4000

https://www.childrensmuseum.org

Conner Prairie — Indiana’s Living History Museum

Winter on the Prarie

Thursday-Sunday January

18 through March 26th

Join us beginning January 18 for an amazing place to play both indoors and outdoors! Winter on the Prairie is a oneof-a-kind way to experience everything Conner Prairie has to offer. Grab your boots and mittens as you set a journey across acres of land. Discover the tranquility and beauty that can only be found after a fresh snow. Then, join the community of Prairietown to warm up by the hearth as you take in the smells of the food on the fire. Make new friends as you learn how winter was embraced with parlor games and time spent indoors with friends and family, much like it is

today. Check out our two indoor play spaces featuring elements of Discovery Station and other play invitations!

Sensory-Friendly Hours

The second Sunday of every month, from 10 AM to noon, are sensoryfriendly hours at Conner Prairie! Enjoy a calm environment. Check in with Guest Relations, stating that you are here for sensory-friendly hours. You will get free admission and may stay as long as you wish.

Various events

Feb. 1 through Feb. 29, 10:00 am- 10:00 pm

13400 Allisonville Road, Fishers, IN 46038

Phone: 317-776-6000 or 800-966-1836 https://www. connerprairie.org/events/list

Sports

Indy Fuel

Feb. 8 9, 10, 23, 24, 27

Indiana Farmers Coliseum, 1202 E 38th St, Indianapolis, IN 46205

https://www.indyfuelhockey.com/

Indiana Pacers

Feb. 2, 6, 8, 22, 25, 26, 28

Gainbridge Field House, 125 South Pennsylvania St. Indianapolis, IN

https://www.nba.com/pacers/

Family Fun

TOWERS OF TOMORROW WITH LEGO BRICKS

Jan. 20- May 12

Get a birds-eye view of 20 of the world’s most iconic and astonishing skyscrapers recreated with breathtaking architectural detail and accuracy by Australia’s Ryan McNaught, the only certified LEGO professional in the Southern Hemisphere. Visitors young and old can create their own “towers of tomorrow” from more than 200,000 loose LEGO bricks in hands-on construction areas. https:// www.visitindy.com/event/towers-oftomorrow-with-lego-bricks/144639/

Monter Jam

Feb. 3- Feb. 4 All Day events

Lucas Oil Stadium,500 South Capital Ave., Indianapolis, IN 46225

Buy all event tickets here: https:// www.monsterjam.com/en-US/ events/indianapolis-in/feb03-2024-feb-04-2024

The 2024 Polar Plunge® season has arrived!

Feb.2- Mar. 2,

At multiple locations

Join us for the 25th Anniversary of Special Olympics Indiana’s signature fundraiser, the Polar Plunge®! This is a momentous occasion, and we need your support to make the 2024 Polar Plunge even more special. Help us reach our fundraising goal of one million dollars and make this anniversary celebration one to remember. We invite you to be part of this incredible milestone and make a splash with us! Together, we can break records and create lasting change in the lives of those we serve.

As participants in Special Olympics Indiana’s signature annual fundraiser, you need to raise a minimum of $99 for the opportunity to plunge at one of the 19 different locations across the state. The Polar Plunge is a bucket-list event, challenging individuals and teams to take an icy dip to demonstrate their commitment to the cause. Each of the 19 locations across the state has its own flair.

Activities vary and may include a costume contest and After Splash Bash where participants can warm up, enjoy refreshments and receive awards for their fundraising efforts. Not only is this an exhilarating experience you’ll never forget, it’s also an incredible way to make a difference in the lives of people with intellectual disabilities. All proceeds directly support training and competition opportunities for the nearly 17,000 Special Olympics athletes throughout the state.

The 2024 season will start on Feb. 2 and continue through Mar. 2, so find a location near you and start fundraising to earn cool prizes! Register here:

https://soindiana.org/polar-plunge/

FUSE Casino Night

Feb. 23, 7:00 pm- 9:00 pm

Adaggios Banquet Hall, 5999 W. Memory Ln., Greenfield, IN. Join FUSE for the first FUSE fundraiser of 2024, Casino Night! Purchase Tickets The evening will begin at 6 pm with a pasta dinner. Guests will be able to enjoy Roulette, Blackjack, Craps, Texas Hold ‘Em and much more. For tickets: https://fuseinc.org/

Indianapolis Zoo

Various events scheduled daily Feb.1- Feb. 29, 9:00 am- 4:00 pm 1200 West Washington St. Indianapolis, IN 46222

https://www.indianapoliszoo.com/

The Studio Movie Grill

3535 W. 86th St., Indianapolis, IN 46268 317-315-8113

Sensory-friendly screenings of movies! Check the website for movies and times.

https://www.studiomoviegrill.com/ movie/special-needs-screenings

The Arts

Beef and Boards

Menopause: The Musical Jan. 5- Feb. 4

Beautiful: The Carole King Musical Feb.8-Mar. 30

9301 Michigan Road, Indianapolis, IN 46268 317-872-9664

https://www.beefandboards. com/Online/default.asp

Jubilate Choir

Butler University, Lilly Hall, Room 133 Wednesdays, 6:45-7:30 PM

The Jubilate Choir is for singers with special needs in grades 3-9. Singers with varying abilities meet each week to grow musically. This tuition-free choir focuses on proper singing techniques, music theory and sight-reading, part-singing, and social skills involved in being a member of a musical ensemble. Though Jubilate has, at its core, the same goals as other choirs in the Indianapolis Children’s Choir (ICC), singers in Jubilate engage in additional activities like visual and tactile experiences that are catered specifically to the current members of the choir.

Director: Lauren Southard

For more information, contact Lauren Southard at 317-940-8065 or lsouthar@ icchoir.org. https://icchoir. org/special-needs/

Gigi’s Playhouse

Various classes during the week.

5909 E. 86th St., Indianapolis, IN 46250 317-288-8235 indy@gigisplayhouse.org https://gigisplayhouse.org/ indianapolis/sfcalendar/

Events

Ask The Arc Webinar Feb.8, 6:00 pm- 7:00 pm

Our Ask The Arc webinar series will provide information and discussion on timely topics relevant to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, their families, and their support systems.

Webinars will take place on the 2nd Thursday of the month at 6:00 p.m. EST. Past webinars will be recorded and posted to view on your own schedule in The Arc of Indiana Academy and on our YouTube channel.

Registration is for the complete webinar series. You can pick and choose which

ones you want to attend without having to register each time. https://us06web.zoom.us/ webinar/register/WN_hTnwxka_S-MknIpiQoNrA#/registration

Early Identification of Autism Spectrum

Indiana Institute on Disability and Community, Indiana Resource Center for Autism (IRCA

Feb.9, 12:15 pm-1:00 pm

Register: https://iu.zoom.us/webinar/ register/WN_pMnJJFlrREm

Nv997f1ELiQ#/registration

Presenter: Brett Enneking, PsyD, HSPP and Tybytha Ryan Lengacher, PhD, HSPP, Assistant Professors of Clinical Pediatrics at Indiana University School of Medicine and Clinical Psychologists

Overview: Research suggests that 1 in 4 children are diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. Given that early intervention is key to ensuring optional outcomes for individuals with, early identification is imperative. Learners will learn early warning signs of autism in toddlers as well as the gold standard autism evaluation process. Resources on where to seek out an autism evaluation will be included.

!0th Night To Shine

Feb. 9, 6:00 pm- 8:00 pm

Gathering Point Church, 7201 Wesleyan Dr, Dayton, Indiana 47941, We are so excited to host Night to Shine, sponsored by @ TimTebowFoundation on Friday, February 9, 2024! Night to Shine is an unforgettable prom night experience,

centered on God’s love, for people with special needs, ages 14 and older.

We are blessed to be a part of this growing worldwide movement through the local church where thousands of people with special needs will be celebrated, given royal treatment, and reminded of God’s love for them! Please complete a registration form and a media release form.

https://www.mygatheringpoint.

church/night-to-shine/

Thank you for your willingness to serve! Ask the Advocate Free Live Zoom Events Sponsored by IEP Services, LLC.

Feb. 12, 2024 from 12:00 pm-!:30 pm

The second evening of each month

Do you need help getting your child with special needs the services they NEED and DESERVE at school?

Each session will begin with a short informative presentation followed by an open Q & A session where parents can get answers about their child’s circumstance and their right to a Free Appropriate Public Education. Please email sheilawolf@sbcglobal. net for more information. Zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/ register/tZwvceCsrTIiGdzwNGqnTmJ_ q7Yf6af985qV#/registration

SibShops- Indianapolis

Feb. 22, 5:00 pm- 8:30 pm

5377 E Washington St, Indianapolis, Indiana 46219

SIBSHOPS ™ is a nationally acclaimed program that provides peer support within a recreational environment for children who have a sibling with special needs. Sibshops is a fun-filled event geared toward the specific needs of siblings with a brother/sister with special health and developmental needs.

1. Siblings have the opportunity to meet other siblings in a relaxed, recreational setting

2. There is an opportunity to discuss common joys and concerns with others

3. Siblings have the opportunity to learn about disabilities and the implications for future growth and challenges

AGES: 6 to 13y.o. and 14 to 18y.o.

INCLUDED: Arrive at 5:30 pm for light dinner followed by programming

SIBSHOP LEADERS: Jan

Schreibman, MM, MT-BC, CCLS; Pam Thompson, CTRS; Luke Sherar, MT-BC; Rachel Williams, MT-BC; Crystal Black, MT-BC, Becky Sorley, MT-BC

One Sibling $15

Two Siblings $20

More than two Siblings $25with special Registration Information: www. creativepathwaysindy.org, janschreibman@gmail.com 317-748-4802