Nearly a dozen professionals will be available during a free parent information session for those in the Lambton-Kent area to offer support and advice when it comes to a child's development.
The Kiwanis Club of Petrolia and Tree Top Learning, an at-home tutoring business, are sponsoring the event on Sunday, April 30 from 11:30 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. at the Petrolia YMCA. Coffee and tea will be served at 1:45 p.m.
Tree Top Learning Owner/Operator Melissa Duquette, who has past experience as a communicative disorders assistant at area public schools, said this is an event she has wanted to organize for several years.
"I want parents to feel supported and give them an opportunity to talk to those professionals in a free event [where] there are no expectations, they can just show up and ask questions," Duquette said.
Nine professionals will give a 15-minute introductory presentation and will be available afterward to speak with attendees.
Duquette said speakers include: a communicative disorders assistant, a speech and language pathologist, an art therapist, an occupational therapist, a child and youth worker, an optometry representative, an early literacy specialist, Dr. Jennifer Cook of Lighthouse Psychological Services, and Debb Pitel of No One Stands Alone (a mental health non-profit organization).
"I see the need for parents to hear from professionals who are working with their child and have an opportunity where they can ask questions of how they can best support their children at home while waiting on waiting lists, and maybe not knowing what they could be looking for at home in ways that they can best support their children," she said.
Duquette said the free event is open to parents/ guardians, family members, or caregivers of children from preschool through high school.
Associated with the event is a silent auction that will end at 3 p.m. Sunday. Money raised will support literacy and mental health initiatives in the community organized by the Kiwanis Club. Items included in the auction can be found through a Facebook event page.