Parents and caregivers of children receiving special needs services found community at Newtown Special Education PTA’s (SEPTA) “Sips & Tips” event on Friday, January 16.

Held at C.H. Booth Library, the drop-in gathering let people connect with others who understand the ups and downs that come with raising a special needs child.

It served as a laid-back space for parents and caregivers to give advice, navigate special education services, or simply receive support from others who “get it.”

Preparations for “Sips & Tips” began well before the Friday morning event. People were encouraged to fill out a survey and let Newtown SEPTA know what conversations or resources would be most helpful for them or their child. The survey also gave people space to suggest potential workshops or guest speakers for future events, meetings, or programs.

By the time January 16 rolled around, Newtown SEPTA members were more than prepared for the special occasion. Different members brought in food, lining a table in the library’s Genealogy Room with cookies, apples, and snack mix. At one end of the table were two coffee containers, along with complimentary sugar packets and small coffee creamers.

People filled up their plate or grabbed a drink before sitting down and enjoying each other’s company. Each time someone new entered the room, everyone excitedly waved them over and welcomed them to the event.

From there, the attendees talked about local programs supporting special needs students, from Unified Theater to Families United in Newtown. Other topics included setting up a calendar with events and creating a list of local resources.

The event was not one concrete discussion; the group often broke out into having a few conversations at a time. As people discussed everyday challenges or the difficulty in navigating special education support, they also laughed about fun, silly memories with their children.

Regardless of why someone was there, Newtown SEPTA President Amanda Perna wanted to make sure everyone felt welcome at the Friday morning get together.

“Sips & Tips” was an extension of Newtown SEPTA’s mission to provide district-wide activities, advocacy, and resources to benefit local special needs children. Beyond education, the non-profit also focuses on inclusion, visibility, communication, and support.

The idea for “Sips & Tips” came from one of Newtown SEPTA’s recent board meetings. The group was talking about how to engage parents in the area when the idea of a warm, low-key gathering came up, according to Newtown SEPTA Treasurer Laura Kohley.

While the group usually meets at night, Perna said they wanted to hold the event during the day to try and connect with more people.

She added, “I feel like a lot of people don’t know we’re around, so we’re just figuring out ways to get our name out there. This way, we can all connect and learn from each other.”

To that end, Kohley said they reached out to C.H. Booth Library and posted about it online to get as much exposure as possible.

Both she and Perna, along with others at the event, noted how easy it can be for parents or caregivers to not be aware of local resources for special needs students. When someone would hear about a new program for the first time, there would be remarks of “I’ve never heard of that before,” or something along those lines.

Everyone also got a list of tips for communicating with their special education children’s school teams. Some of these tips included: making sure requests are put in writing, bringing someone along for Planning and Placement Teams (PPTs), and requesting at least three school days in advance to see drafts of new goals and the reports for triennials/initials.

For Newtown SEPTA, the goal was for people to have an inviting space to share information.

Perna and Kohley said the group is open to holding “Sips & Tips” again, potentially every month or every other month.

As for becoming a member of Newtown SEPTA, Perna said people do not have to have a child with an Individualized Education Program (IEP) or a 504 plan to join.

“We always say anyone anywhere is welcome,” Perna explained. “They don’t even have to live in Newtown ... we’re just here to connect people together.”

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Reporter Jenna Visca can be reached at jenna@thebee.com.