International Speaker
An international speaker and disabilities advocacy consultant, Yvona lectures and leads workshops on issues related to her work.
She has spoken on topics related to employment and disabilities to various groups, including the Vermont Parent Information Center and the Learning Disabilities Association of Canada.
She's available for lectures and speaking engagements.
Calendar
2008
Poety Reading
Description: I will read my original poems, including Words: Handle with Care, Suddenly Spring, Morning Walk and Sovereign God. I will be one of 7 poets with Asperger Syndrome who will be reading poetry as part of the Seeing with a Different Eye series of art exhibits. The exhibit can be viewed from June 2-13, 2008. Gallery hours: Mon-Fri 9-5
Date:June 3, 2008
Time: 10 - 12 Noon
Place: The Massachusetts State House, Doric Hall, Beacon Street, Boston, MA
Seeing with a different eye: Art by adults with Asperger Syndrome
Description: My poetry and haiku photos are featured in this traveling art exhibit.
Cambridge Multicultural Arts Center, 41 Second St., Cambridge MA, Jan. 7 2008 - Feb 1, 2008
Concord Free Public Library, April 2008
Honan Allston Branch, Boston Public Library, 300 N. Harvard St., Allston MA, May 3, 2008 - May 31, 2008
The Massachusetts State House - Doric Hall, Beacon St., Boston MA, June 2 2008 - June 13 2008, Gallery Hours: M-F 9-5
2007
First Night Saranac Lake
Description: Along with other members of the Pen and Parchment Society, a Saranac Lake group of professional writers, I read original poems and excerpts from the forthcoming memoir, My Nine Lives.
Date:Tuesday, December 31, 2007
Time: 6 - 8 PM
Place: Artist's Guild, Broadway, Saranac Lake NY
Authors Night
Description: Signing copies of my book, Employment for Individuals with Non-Verbal Learning Disabilities or Asperger Syndrome: Stories and Strategies and sharing about disabilities advocacy.
Date:Thursday, November 9
Time: 7 PM
Place: Saranac Lake Free Library, Saranac Lake NY
Autumnal Readings
Description: Along with other members of the Pen and Parchment Society, a Saranac Lake group of professional writers, I read excerpts from the forthcoming memoir, My Nine Lives, my book, Employment for Individuals with Non-Verbal Learning Disabilities or Asperger Syndrome, and other essays.
Date:Thursday, November 1, 2007 7 PM
Time: 7 PM
Place: Greens & Beans, 30 Bloomingdale Ave., Saranac Lake NY
View the news article and photo in the Adirondack Daily Enterprise
Autumn Leaves: The 12th annual Glens Falls Chronicle Book Fair
Description: I will be signing copies of my book, Employment for Individuals with Non-Verbal Learning Disabilities or Asperger Syndrome: Stories and Strategies, and participating in a panel.
Date: Sunday, October 14, 2007 11 AM - 4 PM
Place: Glens Falls, NY, Queensbury Hotel
Ohio State University
Description: I will be speaking to students about disabilities advocacy, employment and workplace issues.
Date: Monday, Oct. 1 and Tuesday, Oct. 2
Place: Ohio State University, Columbus OH
Contact: Scott Lissner, University ADA coordinator
Description: Guest Speaker. Sponsored by Families with ASD
Date: Saturday September 29, 2007 10 AM - 4 PM
Place: Anderson Hills United Methodist Church, 7515 Forest Rd. Cincinnati, OH
Seeing with a different eye: Art by adults with Asperger Syndrome
Description: My poetry and haiku photos are featured in this traveling art exhibit.
Date: Sep 28, 2007
Place: John Hancock Hall, Berleley St., Boston MA
Gallery Walk Readings
Description: Along with other members of the Pen and Parchment Society, a Saranac Lake group of professional writers, I read excerpts from the forthcoming memoir, My Nine Lives, my book, Employment for Individuals with Non-Verbal Learning Disabilities or Asperger Syndrome, and other essays. Gallery Walks are a village wide arts event that take place in downtown Saranac Lake the third Thursday of June, July, August, and September. Self-guided tours allow the visitor to view professional artwork in a variety of gallery settings and venues, hear musicians perform at various outdoor locations along the walk. This is a great way for the whole family to experience the arts in Saranac Lake.
Date: Thursday, August 16, 2007 4:30 - 7 PM
Place: Blue Moon Cafe, Saranac Lake NY
BluSeed AllStars Show
Description: Read original poems
Date: Thursday, June 14, 2007
Place: Bluseed Studios, Saranac Lake NY
Poetry Open Minded Mike
Description: Read original poems
Date: April 19, 7:30 PM
Place: Bluseed Studios, Saranac Lake NY
2006
Autumn Leaves: The 11th annual Glens Falls Chronicle Book Fair
Description: I will be signing copies of my book, my book, Employment for Individuals with Non-Verbal Learning Disabilities or Asperger Syndrome: Stories and Strategies, and participating in a panel on how I got published.
Date: Sunday, October 22, 2006 11 AM - 4 PM
Place: Glens Falls, NY, Queensbury Hotel
Gallery Walk Readings
Description: Along with other members of the Pen and Parchment Society, a Saranac Lake group of professional writers, I read excerpts from the forthcoming memoir, My Nine Lives, my book, Employment for Individuals with Non-Verbal Learning Disabilities or Asperger Syndrome, and other essays.
Date: Thursday, September 21, 2006 4 - 7 PM
Place: Blue Moon Cafe, Saranac Lake NY
Art on the Library Lawn: Readings
Description: Along with other members of the Pen and Parchment Society, a Saranac Lake group of professional writers, I read excerpts from the forthcoming memoir, My Nine Lives, my book, Employment for Individuals with Non-Verbal Learning Disabilities or Asperger Syndrome, and other essays.
Date: Saturday, August 19, 2006
Place: Lake Placid Public Library lawn
Disability News and Views Radio Show
Description: I appear on this call-in radio show, talking about NLD, AS, and employment issues relating to my book. You can hear the broadcast on the web site of Disability News and Views Radio. Download the podcast.
Reaching thousands of listeners
Date: Wednesday, May. 14th, 2006 at 7:30 PM
Place: WXRL 1300 AM
Warsaw Ghetto Memories, from an upcoming memoir by Dana Fast with Yvona Fast
Description: "There were no textbooks or other teaching tools. Paper and pencils were scarce. There were no classrooms, and no school building. School was held in the overcrowded apartments, each day at a different location.
"There were no other teachers. There was no school administration. There was only the small group of fewer than twenty fifth graders and Mr. Epstein."
Presented at: Local Writers Pen & Parchment Group hosts Open Minded Mike Nite.
Date: February 18, 2006
Place: Blue Seed Studios, Saranac Lake NY
2005
What's Next? Planning Ahead at Successful Transitions to College & The Workplace: Gaining Life Skills that work, conference sponsored by NLDA
Description: Most do not understand that individuals with college degrees, who are highly intelligent and articulate, can have problems on the job. The prevailing attitude is, "If you're intelligent, then you're not disabled."
Finding a career that maximizes strengths and minimizes areas of weakness like interpersonal communication, multitasking, organization, speed, and workplace efficiency is a first step to employment success. Remember, it is NOT that you can't do what others can, but you CAN do what others can't.
Date: Saturday, Nov. 19th, 2005
Place: N.E.A.T. Marketplace, 120 Holcomb Street, Hartford, Connecticut
NLD through the Life Span
Description: While an LD such as dyslexia mainly affects one's ability to read, NLD affects every area of life. Faulty visual-perceptual, motor, organizational, and social skills combine to make life tasks most people take for granted arduous.
I will discuss how NLD manifests in various life stages from preschool to adult, and make suggestions for helping these individuals function in society at each level.
Presented at: Learning Disabilities Association of Canada National Conference
Date: September 28, 2005
Place: Centennial Auditorium & Convention Centre, Saskatoon, Sask.
What's Next? Planning Ahead for the person with an invisible disability
Description: Invisible disabilities include learning disabilities, autistic spectrum disorders, and psychiatric disorders. To the casual observer, the individual may not seem disabled, just quirky or odd.
Because these disabilities are not readily apparent, these people face unique problems and misunderstandings when seeking employment or entering the workforce.
I will discuss what to consider when choosing employment and how to find a "best fit" situation when deciding on careers and work environments.
Presented at CHARTING the COURSE: Helping youth with disabilities move successfully to work, college, and adult life, conference sponsored by sponsored by the Vermont Parent Information Center
Date: May 10th, 2005
Place: Wyndham Hotel, Burlington VT
NLD Adults at Work
Presented at: the 9th Annual NLDA Symposium
Date: March 11-12, 2005
Place: South San Francisco Conference Center
Interviewed on The Charlie Sherman Show Feb. 4, 2005 from 7:07—7:15, WGIR, Manchester NH
Planning Ahead for the Person with AS or NLD at Rochester Asperger's Support Group, Nov. 2, 2004, Rochester NY