Photo submitted for publication Mandie Englert and her son, Louis Flatt, are kicking off a support initiative for the siblings of children with special needs. Flatt will be the facilitator for the group which meets for the first time on Thursday night at 6 p.m. at the Jefferson DeFrees Family Center.

It can be easy for siblings of children with disabilities to feel like they get less attention than their sibling with disabilities might require.

Enter “Sidekicks,” a social group aimed specifically for children and teens that have siblings with disabilities.

The first meeting is 6 p.m. at the Jefferson DeFrees Family Center.

The group is an outgrowth of HEROES and All About the Feels, support groups for children with disabilities and their parents that was started by Mandie Englert well over a year ago.

Englert said they’ve spent time assessing the needs in the community and believe that this is the right time to kick off the group in support of siblings.

“The facilitator — Louis Flatt, whose brother is autistic — wants kids to know that if they have a sibling with disabilities that they are not alone and wants them to have understanding of the disability,” Englert explained.

Flatt is Englert’s son and Englert said he’s wanted to start the group since she started HEROES.

“The meetings will be support meetings, speaker meetings as well as social events,” she said.

The Sidekicks group will also be assisting with various sensory events that HEROES is hosting.

“Louis is really excited to get Sidekicks stated,” she said. “The meetings will (be) every first Thursday of the month.”

The meetings in future are set for the first Thursday of each month also at 6 p.m. at the Jefferson DeFrees Family Center.

“There will be social distancing and masks are required to enter the Jefferson DeFrees Family Center,” Englert said. “There will be hand sanitizer available at the meeting as well.”

SENSORY SANTA EVENT

Englert said HEROES is also hosting a sensory-friendly Meet Santa event on Dec. 17 at 6 p.m. also at Jefferson DeFrees.

“The event last year was a huge success,” she said. “Santa is amazing and does events for Special Olympics. It is a great way to get photos with Santa in a sensory-friendly environment.”