We’re Special Too! has just completed it's 7th year and continues to flourish and grow. Currently, the program serves 70 families and 85 children that attend at various times through out the Sibshop year.

We’re Special Too! is a non-profit, volunteer-based community program based on the Sibshop model, which is described by Donald J. Meyer and the Sibling Support Project. Sibshop brings together brothers and sisters of children with special physical or developmental needs as well as those with chronic or terminal illness. The program acknowledges the unique challenges facing these siblings. Sponsored by the Friends of Yale-New Haven Hospital and coordinated by a Certified Child Life Specialist, the sibling program offers supportive workshops, held on the second Saturday of every month, to brothers and sisters between the ages of 5 and 16 years. These workshops combine informal discussion with interactive games and activities in a fun-filled, age appropriate environment that emphasizes a "kid's eye view." The workshops are facilitated by a team of specially trained volunteers, which includes: child life specialists, nurses, social workers, psychologists, teacher's, b!usiness professionals and college and graduate students. The sibling workshops run from September through June each year.

The mission of We’re Special Too! is to:

• Advocate for and develop long-term support for brothers and sisters;
• Encourage academic and professional research into sibling issues
• Develop and utilize various resources in the community for sibling programs.

It is well documented that the longest lasting relationship in the family is the sibling relationship. Yet, brothers and sisters of special needs children have fewer opportunities for peer support and education. Siblings need to express their feelings and concerns as well as have them respected and validated. They often need assistance and attention in dealing with the emotions that siblings naturally feel as a result of their family dynamics.

Through participation in the sibling program, brothers and sisters are able to share their feelings with peers in a positive way as they realize that their experiences are not unique. They learn ways to cope with their particular situations and they are recognized for the contributions that they make to their families. Most importantly, siblings are made to feel that they are special too.

We’re Special Too! is dedicated to heightening public awareness of issues particular to siblings of children with chronic or terminal illness or special needs. The program strives to promote understanding by parents and professionals of the family dynamic that occurs when there is a child in the family with a special need.

As a part of the program, the Friends of the Yale-New Haven Hospital have also sponsored educational seminars for parents and providers that are open to the community at large. They provide opportunities to learn, obtain information and network.