The Cortez Public Library recently received a book and video donation that will provide local families of special-needs children with materials to enhance their everyday routines.

Books such as "The Lion Has Asthma," "My Brother has Down’s Syndrome" and "A Cane in Her Hand" are part of the collection donated by Southwest Kids Early Childhood Connections, said program coordinator Trish Peters.

Easy access to the books and videos, Peters hopes, will also enlighten community members about the services Southwest Kids offers and reach those who are eligible for assistance but are unaware of the program.

"We provide access to support and services for families who have children, from birth to 3 years of age, with special needs or developmental concerns," Peters said. "I think we have a high percentage of children in our community who are eligible for early-childhood intervention services, but we are still struggling to reach the families."

Peters said she became involved with a sister program to Southwest Kids when her daughter Erica, now a fourth-grader at Mesa Elementary, was born with Down’s syndrome.

"My daughter received services through Early Childhood Connections when she was born 11 years ago. She started early-intervention services with home-based therapies when she was 5 weeks old."

Peters said the program helped her with everything from feeding concerns to physical and speech therapy for her daughter.

"It helped my husband and me as well as other family members, with tips and techniques to foster her development."

The therapists came to the Peters home and showed them how to incorporate exercises into everyday practices like changing diapers and feeding time.

"They came to our home and supported us in our daily routines," she said.

Peters’ two older children also benefit from the program, which encompassed working with the entire family.

"When Erica was little, I used to shoo Maggie and Cammeron out of the room so Erica could have her therapy, and the therapists were really good to say, ‘Let’s include them in the therapy because they play with her 24 hours a day,’ whereas the therapist comes an hour a week.

"By including all the family members, we all learned techniques and different ways to interact with her."

Peters said the program also helped create emotional supports outside of the immediate family by connecting similar families with special-needs children.

"I think that’s a real vital thing. The opportunity to meet other families was critical for us when Erica was small. It continues to be a big support network."

Peters said anyone who has questions about his or her child’s development is encouraged to go through the screening process to determine their eligibility for services.

Parents are asked to fill out a child-development questionnaire called "Ages and Stages" to identify concerns ranging from low birth weight to medical disabilities.

"If that screening indicates a concern, then, with the parent’s permission, we access further assessment. . . a physical therapist if it’s a motor concern, a speech therapist if it’s a speech concern, and so on," Peters said.

"If they’re deemed eligible then it’s our job to find the services, and those are also provided at no cost to the family."

Services through Southwest Kids are for ages birth to 3 and older children then become eligible for programs through the school district. Peters emphasized all services are free to the families.

Some children who get in the program early on are no longer eligible when they turn 3 because they no longer are in need of the services and have graduated from the program.

"They’ve caught up. For instance, premature babies need that head start and then they’re fine."

Southwest Kids is federally funded through the Colorado Department of Education and is based on area birth ratios, providing approximately $40,000 a year in Montezuma and Dolores counties.

"Research shows the first years of life, birth to 5, are those critical brain-development years that affect the potential for later learning," Peters said.

"They’ve found that it saves taxpayers’ dollars later — children who are provided with early prevention have less of a need for special education as they enter the elementary age."

Peters encourages every parent in the community with developmental concerns about his or her child to contact Southwest Kids for a free assessment.

Southwest Kids also welcomes volunteers and donations for the library collection.