Joe Brubaker joined ASK in January 2011. He has served as director of development since 2002 for Young Audiences of Indiana. Other positions held by Joe over the course of his 29 year career include, the executive director for the Indiana State Chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, the director of development for Little Red Door Cancer Agency, the director of corporate and foundation relations with Marian University, the director of grants and research for Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College, and the acting executive director with (what was) Area 6 Council on Aging. Joe served in various capacities at Area 6 Council on Aging.

Joe is the father of two young children, one being a child with special needs. Joe’s passion is helping parents of children with special needs navigate their daily existence, with grace and dignity.

Jane Scott serves as the Director of Family Support for About Special Kids. This role engages her in many areas of overseeing family support and education. Jane supervises the staff Parent Liaisons through the Indiana Parent Education Project, the Family 2 Family UTS grant and the Indiana Family to Family Health Care Information and Education Center grant. Jane came to About Special Kids in 1997 as a Parent Liaison and still enjoys advocating for children with special needs. Her passion for this work has been driven by the parenting of her son, who was born missing most of all four limbs and who is currently in college at Ball State University.

Previous to becoming a parent of three children, Jane completed an undergraduate degree in social work and a master's degree in youth ministry. The studies and training in both of these degrees prepared her for the advocating she has done for her son and for her present work at About Special Kids.

Cindy Robinson joined the ASK team in November 2007 as the Information Specialist. Her main role at ASK is overseeing and developing the ASK Training programs, maintaining the Resource Directory and the central Resource Room, and coordinating ASK Champions. Cindy holds a Bachelor Degree in Psychology from DePauw University. She has worked previously as a Respite Care Coordinator and an Independent Living Skills Instructor, as well as an advisor for the Indianapolis Self-Advocates group through Noble Centers. She and her husband, Mike, have two children.

After working numerous years in the corporate world, Alicia was drawn to helping others and life led her to About Special Kids. She joined ASK in October, 2009 as Office Coordinator. Alicia holds a Bachelors Degree in Business Management from Indiana University and she supports the executive team, handles vendor management, processes payroll and manages general office operations as needed. Alicia and her son are very active in Cub Scouts and enjoy getting outdoors as much as possible.

Gina Petty joined About Special Kids in October, 2009. She is a proud Mother/Stepmother, Grandma, and Great-Grandma. She and her husband, Richard, live in Northwest Indianapolis. Gina has worked several years in the clerical field and also as a child care provider for infants and children through ninth grade.

Marsha Cheesman has been a Parent Liaison at About Special Kids since 1992. Over the years her duties have changed but her primary focus now is talking with families and helping them locate resources for their children with special needs. Marsha spends her days talking with parents and professionals, working on health care financing issues, special education issues, child care issues, finding resources and providing assistance to families and professionals. Marsha began at About Special Kids when her son Richie, who is multiply disabled, was seven years old. Richie has "grown up" with the organization. Along with her family, Marsha has personally navigated the health care and special education systems. She is now navigating the adult world of disabilities.

Holly resides in the Indianapolis area with her husband and their two children. Aside from a history of ear infections and a host of environmental allergies, her son, born in 2001, is a typical child, though he keeps her plenty challenged! Her daughter, born in 2005, was diagnosed with left hemimegalencephaly (HME), a brain malformation that affect one side of the brain, which caused severe epilepsy, vision impairment and global developmental delays and led her daughter to have a brain surgery called hemispherectomy. Holly has become a strong advocate for her daughter across all areas - healthcare, education, community participation, etc- and has successfully negotiated inclusive special education in the public school setting, despite her daughter's level of need and continued challenges. She’s also had to learn how to advocate for her son on the other end of the 'exceptional' spectrum, as it relates to high ability education and meeting the developmental needs of high ability children.

As a Central Region Parent Liaison, Holly helps families of children with special needs connect with appropriate community resources, find local support groups, understand special education law, plan for the future, prepare for transitions throughout the lifespan and navigate healthcare financing options. Holly has a degree in geology and chemistry and previously worked as a geologist for the Indiana Dept. of Environmental Management. She is also a Board Member of the Epilepsy Foundation of Indiana, the Specialty Director for Hemimegalencephaly and Cortical Dysplasia at The Hemispherectomy Foundation and the Creator and Facilitator of the Hemimegalencephaly Family Support Network. With her exceptional passion and excitement for helping others, Holly works with families to help them gain the knowledge and access to resources they need to become their child's best and most effective advocate.

Lisa Kutschera joined the ASK team in February, 2007 as a Parent Liaison for the Managed Care Organization Project. Previously, Lisa was a Medicaid Waiver Case Manager assisting families and individuals with the programming and services available through this program. Starting as a teenager and proceeding through college, Lisa worked as a direct care worker for individuals with disabilities. After Graduating from The College of St. Benedict, Lisa proceeded obtained the position of QMRP.

In 1998, Lisa and her husband relocated to the Indianapolis area. While residing here, they welcomed 2 boys into the family. The youngest received services through the First Steps program and was later diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. He now receives services through the public school system and is in an integrated Kindergarten classroom.

Patty Reed is a part-time bilingual Parent Liaison at About Special Kids. She started as a consultant for Spanish speaking families in 2003. Currently she works part-time as a Parent Liaison in the central office and one day a week at the Pecar Community Health Center. Patty works with both English and Spanish speaking families providing assistance with issues regarding special education as well as health care financing and other community resources. She also conducts trainings on Special Education Laws in Spanish.

Patty received her Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia. Her husband is a Research Advisor at Eli Lilly. His work brought them to Indianapolis, where Patty worked as a Chemist in an environmental testing company. She is the parent of a son and daughter who are twins who received services through the First Steps program. Her daughter has Autism and continues to receive Special Education services through the public school. Being her daughter’s advocate has given Patty valuable experience and knowledge in community resources and the Special Education system. Patty likes to use her experience and her fluency in Spanish to help families in the Indianapolis area and across the state.

Shannon Fravel works with families and professionals to provide information on community supports, education law, health care financing, and parent support. She was a First Steps Service Coordinator for 6 years for Crawford and Harrison Counties.

Shannon is the mother of triplets in addition to another child. One of her triplets has cerebral palsy, hydrocephalus (has a shunt), and is visually impaired. Two other children are speech delayed. All of her children have received services through First Steps and continue to receive services through school and other agencies. She really loved the support she received through First Steps and wanted to be a part of that program and became a Service Coordinator. She became aware of the regional Parent Liaison position and was eager to become a part of a parent- centered organization. She is very passionate about children and their families and wants to provide information and support to help families become their own best advocate.

Suzanne has been a Parent Liaison in the Central Office since February 2008. She and her husband Rob have a son who is the light of their lives, diagnosed with Autism and Severe Receptive and Expressive Language Disorder at the age of 4 in 2005. He is currently attending an ABA clinic full-time where he receives 40 hours a week of intensive therapy. He also receives OT services, cranio-sacral & myofascial treatments and participates in Music Therapy sessions. Suzanne attended the national Defeat Autism Now! (DAN!) Conference in April 2007, Autism One Conferences in 2008 and 2009, and is familiar with many biomedical treatments for autism spectrum disorders. Suzanne's son has also benefitted greatly from adapted physical education and therapeutic horseback riding programs, and is beginning to participate in Special Olympics programs.

Suzanne is a classically trained mezzo soprano who sang professionally and still teaches voice lessons. A true Spartan fan, her bachelor’s degree is from Michigan State University in Music Education and she earned her Master's degree in vocal performance from the Eastman School of Music. Her experience during her son's early years and especially during the process of his diagnosis led her to a major career change: directing other families get the help, services and support needed for their children and for themselves.

Lorrie Dunkelberger is the Parent Liaison for the Northwest region.

Before joining ASK, she was the Parent Advocate for Med-El for her daughters cochlear implant company. Lorrie and Scott have 4 children, 2 sons (one with ADD and severe asthma) and 2 daughters (one who is deaf with a cochlear implant and one who is hearing impaired, has Eosinophilic esophagitis and a heart defect). Both girls received services through First Steps and are now mainstreamed in public school. Both girls do many activities such as softball, soccer, basketball, tennis and tap dance all with their peers.

Lorrie looks forward to helping you navigate the road of a special needs parent.

My husband and I have 5 children, 3 of which have special considerations. Their diagnosis include: ADHD, a rare chromosome deletion, pre-maturity, hydrocephalus, VP shunt, heart disease, global delays, seizure disorder, and microcephaly. I am passionate about educating/empowering parents to advocate for their children.

I have worked as a skilled pediatric home nurse for approximately 12 years. I also worked as a Developmental Therapist with First Steps, serving age birth-3yrs, for 2 years. Additionally, my husband and I served as foster parents to 23 special needs children through our local DCS, ultimately adopting 2 of them. I look forward to using my experience and resources to serve NE Indiana families through ASK.