Washington State Elks Association
Elks Care, Elks Share
Any child in Washington State with an Occupational or Physical Therapy prescription for treatment and whose family lives within reach of our therapy team is eligible to be helped by Washington Elks Therapy Program for Children. However, only those most critically in need can be accepted into the therapeutic program. While the children we serve range in age from birth to 21, preference is given to infants and young children who are medically fragile or who would otherwise go without services due to their family’s lack of resources, and to children who will experience deterioration in their status without therapy.
Eligibility for services does not require affiliation, membership, or association with the Elks, any of its members, or lodges
Almost 2 years ago, Skylar was featured in “Our Kids”. The past year has held so many changes—we thought an update was due! Skylar is now almost 8 years old—and is flexing his independence AND his muscles! Skylar continues to have many medical appointments, and is still very, very, susceptible to illness. His list of… Read more
With his bright smile and huge hugs, Ian greets his Elks Therapist each week! He usually looks forward to “playing” therapy games, and making things. He even enjoys a meal or snack sometimes during therapy. Little does he know, that each activity is a carefully planned task that helps him overcome the many delays that… Read more
Meet Lillian! Lillian is five years old. She’s been getting therapy with the Washington Elks Therapy Program for about two years, and she is almost ready to “graduate” from feeding therapy! Lillian was born with medical complications that required surgeries, to repair her esophagus and trachea. She had to get her food through a feeding… Read more
Caleb is a three-year-old boy with developmental delay, speech delay, sensory issues and low muscle tone. Before receiving therapy through Elks, Caleb was having constant meltdowns, wasn’t engaging, had no verbal words or any means of communicating, and wasn’t much interested in play beyond lining-up his toys. Because of his sensory issues, Caleb would mouth… Read more
The home-based nature of the Elks Therapy Program allows families to learn about their child in the environment that they are in the most (their home) and how to use the resources they already have at their disposal to help their child succeed. Gena is a 3½ year old, who has very mild Cerebral Palsy,… Read more
This is the story of Vaughn as written by his Mom: December 2015 we were given an even better gift we could have ever imagined. About 12 hours after the birth of our first born we were told that he could possibly have Down Syndrome. We were shocked, scared and feared for his future, but… Read more
Willow is six years old. She has been receiving occupational therapy from the Washington Elks Therapy Program for about a year and a half. Together, we work on developing her fine motor strength, coordination, and balance. This helps Willow keep up with meeting her developmental milestones. She keeps me laughing, she keeps me on my… Read more
I would like to introduce you to Miss Aiva! Aiva is three years old. She loves playing with her toys, watching cartoons, and getting her nails painted. Aiva has a genetic condition, known as Congenital Myasthenia. This condition causes a disruption in the communication between her nerves and her muscles. As a result, Aiva’s muscles… Read more
This is our 6 year old daughter, Julie. After suffering a lack of oxygen at birth, Julie began having seizures and spent her first 9 weeks in the hospital. During this time, she was also diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy, Cortical Visual Impairment, and Reflux. At 15 months old, she developed Hydrocephalus and had a shunt… Read more
One year ago, 4-month-old Thea was admitted to Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital under very scary circumstances… Previously a healthy infant, Thea was now experiencing fever activity and disinterest in feeding – a red flag for any parent. The onset of seizure activity and a diagnosis of septic shock led to a 6-day stay in the… Read more