Representative Grisamore,
As our elected official I would like to make you aware of the issues that your constituents face. I have tried in the past, but I feel that I should make you aware of them again.
I am sure that you know that I endorsed Jason Norbury. I'm disappointed that he didn't win. I felt that we had finally found someone that would truly address our children's issues.
However, Jason didn't win and our needs have not changed. Therefore, I am turning to you , as your constituent and a taxpaying citizen, for real solutions to real problems.
I read your article in the Lee's Summit Tribune. I don't believe that you were completely honest in your response. I wish that, in the future, you would state the facts and not lead people to believe something that isn't true.
"With five of our children that are school age attending Lee's Summit schools, I am passionately committed to support and defend the quality of education that our students enjoy," he said. "I co-led the fight in the Missouri House to defeat legislation this year that would have required Lee's Summit Schools to accept students from the Kansas City school district."
On another note, Grisamore told the Tribune that "One aspect of the bill that was "lost to compromise," Grisamore said, "were tax credits for parents to send their children to another school if their local public school wasn't able to provide an adequate education.""We couldn't find common ground between the public educators and the school-of-choice folks," Grisamore said.Grisamore said some lawmakers were nervous about the potential of public funding going to private schools.
That hardly says that you co-led the fight to defeat that legislation.
Bryce's Law
What is Bryce's Law? This is a bill currently being considered in the Missouri legislature that creates the Missouri Special Needs Scholarship Tax Credit Program. (House Bill 1886 and Senate Bill SS/SCS/SBs 993 & 770) . Please play the quick video below from Representative Scharnhorst in which he shares why this bill is so important:This program gives parents of special needs children with an IEP in a public school the choice to move their child to another public or private school using a special needs scholarship that will cover all or part of the costs as well as transportation to certain public schools.
Beginning with tax year 2008, a taxpayer would be able to claim a tax credit against a state tax liability equal to 80 percent of his/her contribution to a scholarship-granting organization. To read the current bill summary, click here
That is hardly a bill that was designed to make Lee's Summit schools accept students from Kansas City. We both know that no one would send their special needs child to Lee's Summit. Yet, you sent out mailings and have continued to state that it was. That was very misleading and I would expect more from a minister and definitely from my legislator.
The input I have received from them has influenced the three autism related bills I have filed this year—two of which are being heard in the health care policy committee this Tuesday. Many other autism and disabilities advocates and groups I work with are greatly dismayed by this and understand that no Missouri legislator is more pro-active on autism and special needs than me—and I am just getting started.
Comment by Jeff Grisamore from Lee's Summit, Missouri on Apr 12th, 2008, 15:16 pm
While I have gained much inspiration to advocate for Autism through the multiple meetings and hours I have spent with Sherri Tucker's autism support group, the three bills I am sponsoring did not come from them. Two of them are recommendations of the Missouri Blue Ribbon Panel and the other autism bill on education was developed in collaboration with educators.
Comment by Jeff Grisamore from Lees Summit on Apr 15th, 2008, 22:44 pm
I will say to answer your questoin of how we live in a $200,000 house with such a low salary, we were offered the house right after our daughter died and a significant portion of the house was gifted through the benevolence of friends, family and a foundation. We do not make $100,000 a year as you claimed and never have. We bought that house in 2003 when my salary was much higher and it is difficult to keep up with our mortgage. We have considered downsizing, but want to honor the generosity of those who helped us with the home by trying to stay in it and it is a bad sellers market anyway.
You don't have a mortgage on your house. Bill Kenny paid for your house.
As for the Autism Blue Ribbon Panel, I did not speak to Senator Justus about letting me on the Commission. Senator Gibbons, who leads the Senate told me he had wished he had known of my interest in autism before the apointments because he would have wanted to appoint me. We did discuss having me added to the panel after the appointments, but I instead plan to serve on the Autism Commission as a House member. It would have been difficult for me though to make all their hearings with my interim commitee and service on the Missouri Children's Services Commission of which I am now serving as Chairman.
You did ask her. I was at the meeting and she told me afterwards. Also, the list for the Autism Commission came out and your name was not on it. I also saw the notes that you were writing about that. It happened when I walked over to address you because you purposely sat several seats away from Debbie and I.
As for a committee on autism and special needs in R-7, I have spoken to the Superintendent and Board, which relates to why he spoke to you. If that committee is formed, you will have one voice, although I would like to see D on it too, along with others, such as J. That will be up to R-7. Given your antagonism toward me and them, you are most fortunate you are being considered to be on such a committee. I would encourage you to consider changing your approach for the sake of LSASG's credibility and influence with R-7 and beyond. Your current approach is only isolating and alienating yourself from me and others who are doing much to help children with autism and their families.
"Rep grisamore is getting ahead of himself. There have been no follow up discussions about any ideas that may have been mentioned in some setting. Honestly, I do not recall discussing this committee but I may have forgotten. It happens. My invitation to discuss the issues is for you only at this time. You and I can discuss together where all of this goes from there. I hope this clarifies my intention. I do not go into this knowing where we will end up but do feel our dialogue has the potential to make us a better district and help you better understand our challenges. I am really looking forward to our meetings."
While there is animosity between us, that still doesn't release you from the responsibilities that you have as my legislator. I am going to be following things much closer the next two years and I plan to hold you to your word.
I am still very disappointed in the inaccurate statements and false information that you continue to distribute, but you are all that I have. Therefore, I will work with you because my child's life depends on it. But, make no mistake, I am not as naive as I was two years ago and I will not make the same mistakes.
I am holding you to your word and I will make sure that you live up to it. The people of Lee's Summit deserve it and you should provide it.
Good luck in your position and don't let us down again. You owe it to us to do the things that you claim that you do and that you promise you will do.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Jeff's Comments On Article
http://www.pitch.com/2008-04-10/news/missouri-state-rep-jeff-grisamore-uses-the-death-of-his-infant-daughter-to-ask-for-campaign-cash/#Comments
Jeff had a lot of friends and people that he works with write in and stand up for him. These people have their own agenda and are not working within the autism community. They won't even allow someone to disagree with them.
Dear David,I saw your article online and in print and have received calls and e-mails on it. As I said during the interview that I granted you in my office at the Capitol when you confronted me last week—with no notice—you are, no doubt, a good writer. Like a colleague in the House who knows you said, you ought to be writing for a bigger paper. For a Pitch article, which is known for being alternative and on the edge, I thought you were pretty fair and balanced and quoted me very accurately.
While some of my Republican colleagues (Democrats too) and friends have been the target of outright hit pieces by the Pitch and were grossly misrepresented, I thought you would be more fair and reflect the genuineness of my passion to fight for the disabled after our 30 to 40 minute interview.
I think you did bring out the sincerity of my motives to advocate for the disabled that is inspired by my daughter who died. During the year we had with her, it is as if time stood still. She required 24/7 around the clock care with oxygen, monitors and alarms by the bedside. But, as my oldest son said, who was 12 when she died, it was the best year of our lives when we had Rebekah with us—perhaps the hardest, but the best.
I could never have comprehended losing a child—and still can’t. After Rebekah died, a man who lost his daughter gave me some wise advice—what he was told by another many who lost a daughter too—that you can fall into bitterness and pull everyone around you down with you or rise up and make your life a memorial and tribute to your child that died.
During the year we had with Rebekah—for which we hoped would be a lifetime—we experienced just a little of what families with special needs children go through and it does, as you wrote, “inform” my passion for what I do now for them in the Missouri House and will continue to do to fight, advocate and legislate for the disabled.
I would offer a few observations in response to your article. First, let’s remember the context. You received a forward of an e-mail that I sent to four trusted allies in the disabilities community whom I work with for the disabled. They wanted to forward out a letter to their family and friends in the disabilities community. Someone who received that e-mail obviously forwarded to the Pitch.
Secondly, I would submit that your article took my letter out of context. You quoted my letter as saying, "Fighting for individuals with disabilities — especially children — and their families is my highest priority. This passion is driven by our 7th child, Rebekah, who died November 26th, 2002 from complications of Prader-Willi Syndrome at 11 months and 18 days."
I, and many in the disabilities community, who take strong exception with the article (and I hope the Pitch will publish their responses), do not at all see my above quote as “connecting my request for money to the death of my daughter” as your headlines in print/online and the article imply. I would see doing so as inappropriate and am careful as to when and how I mention Rebekah. The only reason I included her picture in the e-mail is because the Kansas City Star had told me that same day I wrote and sent the e-mail that her story would be on the cover of their Sunday edition the next day—on March 30th.
What I was doing is simply sharing that the basis of my passion for the disabled is driven by my disabled daughter—period. I would have wanted anyone who might receive that forward to understand my genuineness and sincerity—that I am not simply some stereotypical politician telling them what they want to hear to get money, but that I am passionate and driven for the disabled from personal experience.
As you quoted, “to continue my fight for the disabled and their families, I need to raise significant funds for my re-election” and it is a “reality of politics that in order to be re-elected, you’ve got to raise money.” The four allies for the disabled that received my e-mail—three of which have developmentally disabled children and one a grandchild—forwarded my letter out with a cover letter from themselves. We would have thought the recipients would be more trustworthy than as to forward the e-mail to the Pitch. Oh well. I am glad you got the story. I think others would have been far less fair.
As I told you, I love public service and disdain politics. I refuse to exercise the luxury some of my colleagues from both parties do of receiving tens of thousands from special interests. I would rather receive 1000 $30 contributions from grassroots in the disabilities communities—thereby giving them a stronger influence in Jeff City—than to receive 100 checks for $325 from special interest. The most meaningful contributions we ever received in my non-profit work were not the six-figure donations, but the 50 cents a month for nearly 20 years received faithfully from a single woman with disabilities—like the widows mite.
Where I think the real crassness and exploitation in this story may have happened is when the Pitch editors chose to sensationalize your storyline with a headline to “hustle” papers at the expense of my daughter’s death and my public service. I often share her story—whether encouraging organ donation for lifesaving transplantation or research or for the disabled—because it honors her and impacts my hearers and readers and helps them understand my personal experience and passion for those issues.
The only big disappointment in your article is quotes attributed from an autism advocate and constituent as saying I refuse to meet with that group unless the event is held in public and that I take credit for the work they are doing and that everything I do is to further my political career. I have devoted multiple meeting and countless hours to meetings with that person and their group.Many others in the autism and disabilities community knows those assertions and mischaracterizations you attributed to that person are not at all accurate. I have met with that person and group multiple times—at the Capitol more than once, repeatedly three or more times in area restaurants and at a church where they meet, and have communicated with them by phone and e-mail as well as in education forums—dozens of hours in all.
The input I have received from them has influenced the three autism related bills I have filed this year—two of which are being heard in the health care policy committee this Tuesday. Many other autism and disabilities advocates and groups I work with are greatly dismayed by this and understand that no Missouri legislator is more pro-active on autism and special needs than me—and I am just getting started.
As far as your words of wisdom to consider Ann Coulter’s slams on John Edwards talking about his son who died, I would not view Edwards honoring his son’s memory as politicizing like Glenn Beck implies Cindy Sheehan did. In either case, I would guess neither Ann Coulter or Glenn Beck—nor the Pitch editors—have ever lost a child like John Edwards, Cindy Sheehan or I have. If they had, they might not be so crass and disrespectful themselves. But, Ann Coulter sells books and the Pitch “hustles” newspapers.
Apart from the disappointment in the article, I thought you did a pretty good—fair and balanced—job. It would be tempting to become angry at the Pitch for exploiting my daughter's death, but I realize the Pitch has done much worse against others, and--as public servants--we are often the targets of such misprepresentations. So, write on David.
Jeff Grisamore
Comment by Jeff Grisamore from Lee's Summit, Missouri on Apr 12th, 2008, 15:16 pm
I stand by my comments. I just spoke with Representative Grisamore on Saturday and he was asking me to send him more information so that he could write more bills.
I recently ran for school board and my platform was special education. My only issue was the education that our children are not getting. It was the perfect opportunity to help children with special needs. Representative Grisamore didn't help at all with my campaign. When I asked him why he said that I didn't ask. I recently had an event at Beauchamp's and Representative Grisamore found out about it. When I found out that he was coming I asked him to not use this night as a night to campaign. He didn't respond to my email and he went from table to table talking about Rebekah and campaigning. I told him that night that my campaign could use help.
Here is what I wrote to him."I'm glad to see that you plan to come to dinner and support the Autism Alliance. It is a worthy cause. Will your whole family be attending? It will be a nice evening out for the family. The event is from 6:30-9:30. Folks are coming and going as they please. There is no certain time to be there. Hopefully the place will be full, but the wait shouldn't be too long. It will be dinner as usual, but with a smaller menu. That way it will be easier for the staff to get people in and out. There isn't going to be a formal meeting or time for speaking. We will just be serving food and giving a portion of the proceeds to charity. The Alliance will be signing people up for the walk and Royals tickets.
I sure could have used your help with my campaign to help children with special needs in the Lee's Summit district. As you know, that's how I ran my campaign and I have gotten slammed a lot. There haven't been a lot of public officials willing to stand up for our kids and I feel like the campaign could have been better if people weren't so afraid of standing up for what is right instead of standing with the majority. But, I feel like I have done what I know is right in my heart and that I can sleep at night knowing that I didn't let the administration beat me into being silent. At least I got the message out that Lee's Summit is not doing a good job with special needs. Even if everyone says that those kids just don't matter.
We are going to have some celebrities at our event. They are mostly from the Chiefs and Royals. I'm so pleased that we were able to get some faces that folks will recognize. It will really help out the Alliance. See you on Thursday."
Comment by Sherri Tucker from Lee's Summit, MO on Apr 15th, 2008, 10:03 am
In response to the above comments under number six, I am disappointed to read Sherri Tucker stands by her comments in the article. The many other autism groups, advocates and service providers know the sincerity of my passion to fight and advocate for children with autism and their families and those who care for them. This is my highest legislative priority and I am currently sponsoring three bills on autism.
To read that Mrs. Tucker "stands by her comments" that I have refused to meet with them was thoroughly rebutted in my 1st comment above. To read that those I have worked so hard to serve think "everything I do is to further my political career" is indeed disappointing.
I told Sherri that I have been "helping her by working 18 hours a day in Jefferson City to pass autism legislation since January." I also told her I would be e-mailing various autism groups as we continue to work on legislation, especially related to IEPs.
While I have gained much inspiration to advocate for Autism through the multiple meetings and hours I have spent with Sherri Tucker's autism support group, the three bills I am sponsoring did not come from them. Two of them are recommendations of the Missouri Blue Ribbon Panel and the other autism bill on education was developed in collaboration with educators.
Concerning the event at Beauchamps, I received an invitation to the event at my Capitol office and was eager to attend to show support for the autism community that we are working so hard to serve in Jefferson City. I was not told anything about not using the night to campaign and would not have--and did not do so. The election is seven months away. I am workind day and night to serve my constituents and, especially, those in the autism communities.
I have thoroughly responded to Sherri's e-mail that I received after that event and she received before writing the above post. During the event at Beauchamps, I did not "go from table to table talking about Rebekah and campaigning."
What I did do was talk to Bill Regan, a friend I know through mutual friends and Langsford Boys Home at one table, talked to Chase, a reporter from the Journal, who wanted to ask me some questions, and said hi to other friends I knew at another table, then spent the rest of my time there sitting at one table with Mike Allen and others who I know through EFECT (Encouraging Families with Exceptional Children Together). My campaign and Rebekah were not discussed.
It is very sad to be be so grossly and repeatedly misrepresented in a public forum like this by those I have worked so hard to serve. However, I can assure you this, no matter how much misrepresentation and antagonism I experience from a few in the autism community, I will continue to fight and advocate for children with autism and their families and those that care for them and am encouraged by how many groups in the greater autism community support our efforts on their behalf in Jefferson City.
We had a very encouraging hearing and press conference today on my autism insurance bill (HB 2265) and the NBC Today Show was here to film all of it for a story they are doing on Molly Schad, who was featured with her son with autism in a cover story in yesterday's St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Comment by Jeff Grisamore from Lees Summit on Apr 15th, 2008, 22:44 pm
Jeff had a lot of friends and people that he works with write in and stand up for him. These people have their own agenda and are not working within the autism community. They won't even allow someone to disagree with them.
Dear David,I saw your article online and in print and have received calls and e-mails on it. As I said during the interview that I granted you in my office at the Capitol when you confronted me last week—with no notice—you are, no doubt, a good writer. Like a colleague in the House who knows you said, you ought to be writing for a bigger paper. For a Pitch article, which is known for being alternative and on the edge, I thought you were pretty fair and balanced and quoted me very accurately.
While some of my Republican colleagues (Democrats too) and friends have been the target of outright hit pieces by the Pitch and were grossly misrepresented, I thought you would be more fair and reflect the genuineness of my passion to fight for the disabled after our 30 to 40 minute interview.
I think you did bring out the sincerity of my motives to advocate for the disabled that is inspired by my daughter who died. During the year we had with her, it is as if time stood still. She required 24/7 around the clock care with oxygen, monitors and alarms by the bedside. But, as my oldest son said, who was 12 when she died, it was the best year of our lives when we had Rebekah with us—perhaps the hardest, but the best.
I could never have comprehended losing a child—and still can’t. After Rebekah died, a man who lost his daughter gave me some wise advice—what he was told by another many who lost a daughter too—that you can fall into bitterness and pull everyone around you down with you or rise up and make your life a memorial and tribute to your child that died.
During the year we had with Rebekah—for which we hoped would be a lifetime—we experienced just a little of what families with special needs children go through and it does, as you wrote, “inform” my passion for what I do now for them in the Missouri House and will continue to do to fight, advocate and legislate for the disabled.
I would offer a few observations in response to your article. First, let’s remember the context. You received a forward of an e-mail that I sent to four trusted allies in the disabilities community whom I work with for the disabled. They wanted to forward out a letter to their family and friends in the disabilities community. Someone who received that e-mail obviously forwarded to the Pitch.
Secondly, I would submit that your article took my letter out of context. You quoted my letter as saying, "Fighting for individuals with disabilities — especially children — and their families is my highest priority. This passion is driven by our 7th child, Rebekah, who died November 26th, 2002 from complications of Prader-Willi Syndrome at 11 months and 18 days."
I, and many in the disabilities community, who take strong exception with the article (and I hope the Pitch will publish their responses), do not at all see my above quote as “connecting my request for money to the death of my daughter” as your headlines in print/online and the article imply. I would see doing so as inappropriate and am careful as to when and how I mention Rebekah. The only reason I included her picture in the e-mail is because the Kansas City Star had told me that same day I wrote and sent the e-mail that her story would be on the cover of their Sunday edition the next day—on March 30th.
What I was doing is simply sharing that the basis of my passion for the disabled is driven by my disabled daughter—period. I would have wanted anyone who might receive that forward to understand my genuineness and sincerity—that I am not simply some stereotypical politician telling them what they want to hear to get money, but that I am passionate and driven for the disabled from personal experience.
As you quoted, “to continue my fight for the disabled and their families, I need to raise significant funds for my re-election” and it is a “reality of politics that in order to be re-elected, you’ve got to raise money.” The four allies for the disabled that received my e-mail—three of which have developmentally disabled children and one a grandchild—forwarded my letter out with a cover letter from themselves. We would have thought the recipients would be more trustworthy than as to forward the e-mail to the Pitch. Oh well. I am glad you got the story. I think others would have been far less fair.
As I told you, I love public service and disdain politics. I refuse to exercise the luxury some of my colleagues from both parties do of receiving tens of thousands from special interests. I would rather receive 1000 $30 contributions from grassroots in the disabilities communities—thereby giving them a stronger influence in Jeff City—than to receive 100 checks for $325 from special interest. The most meaningful contributions we ever received in my non-profit work were not the six-figure donations, but the 50 cents a month for nearly 20 years received faithfully from a single woman with disabilities—like the widows mite.
Where I think the real crassness and exploitation in this story may have happened is when the Pitch editors chose to sensationalize your storyline with a headline to “hustle” papers at the expense of my daughter’s death and my public service. I often share her story—whether encouraging organ donation for lifesaving transplantation or research or for the disabled—because it honors her and impacts my hearers and readers and helps them understand my personal experience and passion for those issues.
The only big disappointment in your article is quotes attributed from an autism advocate and constituent as saying I refuse to meet with that group unless the event is held in public and that I take credit for the work they are doing and that everything I do is to further my political career. I have devoted multiple meeting and countless hours to meetings with that person and their group.Many others in the autism and disabilities community knows those assertions and mischaracterizations you attributed to that person are not at all accurate. I have met with that person and group multiple times—at the Capitol more than once, repeatedly three or more times in area restaurants and at a church where they meet, and have communicated with them by phone and e-mail as well as in education forums—dozens of hours in all.
The input I have received from them has influenced the three autism related bills I have filed this year—two of which are being heard in the health care policy committee this Tuesday. Many other autism and disabilities advocates and groups I work with are greatly dismayed by this and understand that no Missouri legislator is more pro-active on autism and special needs than me—and I am just getting started.
As far as your words of wisdom to consider Ann Coulter’s slams on John Edwards talking about his son who died, I would not view Edwards honoring his son’s memory as politicizing like Glenn Beck implies Cindy Sheehan did. In either case, I would guess neither Ann Coulter or Glenn Beck—nor the Pitch editors—have ever lost a child like John Edwards, Cindy Sheehan or I have. If they had, they might not be so crass and disrespectful themselves. But, Ann Coulter sells books and the Pitch “hustles” newspapers.
Apart from the disappointment in the article, I thought you did a pretty good—fair and balanced—job. It would be tempting to become angry at the Pitch for exploiting my daughter's death, but I realize the Pitch has done much worse against others, and--as public servants--we are often the targets of such misprepresentations. So, write on David.
Jeff Grisamore
Comment by Jeff Grisamore from Lee's Summit, Missouri on Apr 12th, 2008, 15:16 pm
I stand by my comments. I just spoke with Representative Grisamore on Saturday and he was asking me to send him more information so that he could write more bills.
I recently ran for school board and my platform was special education. My only issue was the education that our children are not getting. It was the perfect opportunity to help children with special needs. Representative Grisamore didn't help at all with my campaign. When I asked him why he said that I didn't ask. I recently had an event at Beauchamp's and Representative Grisamore found out about it. When I found out that he was coming I asked him to not use this night as a night to campaign. He didn't respond to my email and he went from table to table talking about Rebekah and campaigning. I told him that night that my campaign could use help.
Here is what I wrote to him."I'm glad to see that you plan to come to dinner and support the Autism Alliance. It is a worthy cause. Will your whole family be attending? It will be a nice evening out for the family. The event is from 6:30-9:30. Folks are coming and going as they please. There is no certain time to be there. Hopefully the place will be full, but the wait shouldn't be too long. It will be dinner as usual, but with a smaller menu. That way it will be easier for the staff to get people in and out. There isn't going to be a formal meeting or time for speaking. We will just be serving food and giving a portion of the proceeds to charity. The Alliance will be signing people up for the walk and Royals tickets.
I sure could have used your help with my campaign to help children with special needs in the Lee's Summit district. As you know, that's how I ran my campaign and I have gotten slammed a lot. There haven't been a lot of public officials willing to stand up for our kids and I feel like the campaign could have been better if people weren't so afraid of standing up for what is right instead of standing with the majority. But, I feel like I have done what I know is right in my heart and that I can sleep at night knowing that I didn't let the administration beat me into being silent. At least I got the message out that Lee's Summit is not doing a good job with special needs. Even if everyone says that those kids just don't matter.
We are going to have some celebrities at our event. They are mostly from the Chiefs and Royals. I'm so pleased that we were able to get some faces that folks will recognize. It will really help out the Alliance. See you on Thursday."
Comment by Sherri Tucker from Lee's Summit, MO on Apr 15th, 2008, 10:03 am
In response to the above comments under number six, I am disappointed to read Sherri Tucker stands by her comments in the article. The many other autism groups, advocates and service providers know the sincerity of my passion to fight and advocate for children with autism and their families and those who care for them. This is my highest legislative priority and I am currently sponsoring three bills on autism.
To read that Mrs. Tucker "stands by her comments" that I have refused to meet with them was thoroughly rebutted in my 1st comment above. To read that those I have worked so hard to serve think "everything I do is to further my political career" is indeed disappointing.
I told Sherri that I have been "helping her by working 18 hours a day in Jefferson City to pass autism legislation since January." I also told her I would be e-mailing various autism groups as we continue to work on legislation, especially related to IEPs.
While I have gained much inspiration to advocate for Autism through the multiple meetings and hours I have spent with Sherri Tucker's autism support group, the three bills I am sponsoring did not come from them. Two of them are recommendations of the Missouri Blue Ribbon Panel and the other autism bill on education was developed in collaboration with educators.
Concerning the event at Beauchamps, I received an invitation to the event at my Capitol office and was eager to attend to show support for the autism community that we are working so hard to serve in Jefferson City. I was not told anything about not using the night to campaign and would not have--and did not do so. The election is seven months away. I am workind day and night to serve my constituents and, especially, those in the autism communities.
I have thoroughly responded to Sherri's e-mail that I received after that event and she received before writing the above post. During the event at Beauchamps, I did not "go from table to table talking about Rebekah and campaigning."
What I did do was talk to Bill Regan, a friend I know through mutual friends and Langsford Boys Home at one table, talked to Chase, a reporter from the Journal, who wanted to ask me some questions, and said hi to other friends I knew at another table, then spent the rest of my time there sitting at one table with Mike Allen and others who I know through EFECT (Encouraging Families with Exceptional Children Together). My campaign and Rebekah were not discussed.
It is very sad to be be so grossly and repeatedly misrepresented in a public forum like this by those I have worked so hard to serve. However, I can assure you this, no matter how much misrepresentation and antagonism I experience from a few in the autism community, I will continue to fight and advocate for children with autism and their families and those that care for them and am encouraged by how many groups in the greater autism community support our efforts on their behalf in Jefferson City.
We had a very encouraging hearing and press conference today on my autism insurance bill (HB 2265) and the NBC Today Show was here to film all of it for a story they are doing on Molly Schad, who was featured with her son with autism in a cover story in yesterday's St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Comment by Jeff Grisamore from Lees Summit on Apr 15th, 2008, 22:44 pm
Missouri State Rep. Jeff Grisamore uses the death of his infant daughter to ask for campaign cash
http://www.pitch.com/content/printVersion/577870
Missouri State Rep. Jeff Grisamore uses the death of his infant daughter to ask for campaign cash
By David Martin
published: April 10, 2008
Missouri State Rep. Jeff Grisamore wants to inspire others — and get re-elected.
Upon taking office last year, Missouri State Rep. Jeff Grisamore went to work for the vulnerable. The first bill he sponsored would have expanded the number of families eligible to receive child-care assistance.
Grisamore, a Lee's Summit Republican, didn't let party politics stand in the way of what he likes to call "responsible compassion." More than half of the bill's 56 co-sponsors were Democrats.
The bill died in committee, but Grisamore has continued to work on behalf of people who face adversity. Five of the 10 bills he has sponsored in this session concern the disabled.
Grisamore says the disabled and the mentally ill should receive the first portions of the state budget. "Instead, they end up having to fight for crumbs off the table," he tells me.
It's about 6 p.m., and Grisamore is sitting in a chair in his office at the Capitol, a Diet Coke within reach. The House has broken for dinner. With a long list of bills on the docket, Grisamore expects the workday to last until midnight.
This is a busy time for state lawmakers. In addition to their legislative duties, there's an election to consider. Grisamore recently sent out an "urgent message" asking for campaign contributions.
"Fighting for individuals with disabilities — especially children — and their families is my highest priority," the e-mail began.
Grisamore then connected his request for money to the death of his daughter.
"This passion is driven by our 7th child, Rebekah, who died November 26th, 2002 from complications of Prader-Willi Syndrome at 11 months and 18 days." A picture of Rebekah appears at the top of the e-mail, along with Grisamore's head shot.
Prader-Willi syndrome is a genetic disorder characterized by obesity and decreased mental capacity and muscle tone. At birth, children who suffer from the condition appear small and floppy. An intense desire for food develops later, leading to excessive weight gain and associated health problems.
Rebekah suffocated after her body failed to digest a bottle of milk. Grisamore and his wife, Mary, arranged for her organs and tissue to be used for research. A feature story last month in The Kansas City Star explained that she was the only infant with Prader-Willi available for study.
Grisamore tells me that Rebekah's life and death inform a lot of what he tries to do in Jefferson City. A Bible-school graduate who is active in mission and nonprofit work, Grisamore says he wants to be an "advocate for the elderly," "a champion for children" and a "defender of the disabled." Grisamore says his daughter's plight "took [his] empathy and commitment for families with special needs to a whole new level."
Grisamore's commitment is admirable on its face. But at what point does his talking about his daughter become exploitive?
Last November, Grisamore wrote an "As I See It" piece for the Star stressing the importance of organ donation. The column began with a description of the Grisamore family weeping, praying and launching balloons at Rebekah's grave site.
The recent feature story about Rebekah's gift to science closed with Grisamore talking about organ-donation legislation he's trying to pass.
And then comes the fundraising letter.
"To continue my fight for the disabled and their families, I need to raise significant funds for my re-election this year," Grisamore writes.
Encouraging people to donate their organs is one thing. Using Rebekah's story to hustle for campaign cash seems to be quite another.
Grisamore tells me that he sent the message to four people who work with and on behalf of those with special needs. But with a boldface request that readers forward it, the e-mail was obviously intended for a wider audience.
He says he's trying to appeal to a base of the disabled and their families. What others might find crass he describes as an effort to build grass-roots support. "The reality of politics is that in order to be re-elected, you've got to raise money," he says.
A suburban evangelical and father of eight, Grisamore can surprise you. His coherent rejoinders to criticism on left-leaning blogs suggest a brand-name law degree, not matriculation at Trinity International University, a divinity school in Deerfield, Illinois. (Last fall, lawyer and Democrat Steve Bough lauded Grisamore for responding “thoughtfully, intelligently and professionally” to a post on Blog CCP that took Grisamore to task on a variety of issues, including his pay as a nonprofit executive.) Grisamore's gelled hair and five o'clock shadow bring to mind a raffish lobbyist more than a churchgoing Republican.
And unlike many conservatives, Grisamore believes that government can accomplish things.
He talks about a constitutional amendment to mandate spending for those with disabilities and special needs. "I'm here to create a revolution for these folks," he says.
But one advocate for autism awareness regards Grisamore with the mistrust that nonbelievers hold for televangelists.
Sherri Tucker, co-founder of the Lee’s Summit Autism Support Group, says Grisamore has refused to meet with her group unless the event is held in public and he takes credit for work that her group is doing.
"Everything he does is to further his political career," she says.
Tucker says she's also put off by the frequency with which Grisamore talks about Rebekah. She says he mentioned Rebekah at a rally for disability rights in Jefferson City last month.
Grisamore says he hopes that his family's experience can be an inspiration to others.
Grisamore tells me that he regrets having offended anyone with the letter. But given the chance to second-guess his decision to include Rebekah's story in a solicitation for donations, Grisamore says he would not have done anything differently.
"Rebekah is very much a part of all this," he tells me.
Still, Grisamore might be wise to consider the hell that some right-wing commentators have unleashed on other public figures who have lost children. Ann Coulter once suggested that because John Edwards spoke about his son Wade so much, he needed an "Ask me about my son's death in a horrific car accident" bumper sticker. Glenn Beck called grieving Iraq War mother Cindy Sheehan a "tragedy pimp."
These attack artists might not be the most mainstream Republicans. But they've undoubtedly helped members of Grisamore's party dominate many statehouses — where, collectively, they've made life tougher for the vulnerable people for whom Grisamore says he's fighting.
Missouri State Rep. Jeff Grisamore uses the death of his infant daughter to ask for campaign cash
By David Martin
published: April 10, 2008
Missouri State Rep. Jeff Grisamore wants to inspire others — and get re-elected.
Upon taking office last year, Missouri State Rep. Jeff Grisamore went to work for the vulnerable. The first bill he sponsored would have expanded the number of families eligible to receive child-care assistance.
Grisamore, a Lee's Summit Republican, didn't let party politics stand in the way of what he likes to call "responsible compassion." More than half of the bill's 56 co-sponsors were Democrats.
The bill died in committee, but Grisamore has continued to work on behalf of people who face adversity. Five of the 10 bills he has sponsored in this session concern the disabled.
Grisamore says the disabled and the mentally ill should receive the first portions of the state budget. "Instead, they end up having to fight for crumbs off the table," he tells me.
It's about 6 p.m., and Grisamore is sitting in a chair in his office at the Capitol, a Diet Coke within reach. The House has broken for dinner. With a long list of bills on the docket, Grisamore expects the workday to last until midnight.
This is a busy time for state lawmakers. In addition to their legislative duties, there's an election to consider. Grisamore recently sent out an "urgent message" asking for campaign contributions.
"Fighting for individuals with disabilities — especially children — and their families is my highest priority," the e-mail began.
Grisamore then connected his request for money to the death of his daughter.
"This passion is driven by our 7th child, Rebekah, who died November 26th, 2002 from complications of Prader-Willi Syndrome at 11 months and 18 days." A picture of Rebekah appears at the top of the e-mail, along with Grisamore's head shot.
Prader-Willi syndrome is a genetic disorder characterized by obesity and decreased mental capacity and muscle tone. At birth, children who suffer from the condition appear small and floppy. An intense desire for food develops later, leading to excessive weight gain and associated health problems.
Rebekah suffocated after her body failed to digest a bottle of milk. Grisamore and his wife, Mary, arranged for her organs and tissue to be used for research. A feature story last month in The Kansas City Star explained that she was the only infant with Prader-Willi available for study.
Grisamore tells me that Rebekah's life and death inform a lot of what he tries to do in Jefferson City. A Bible-school graduate who is active in mission and nonprofit work, Grisamore says he wants to be an "advocate for the elderly," "a champion for children" and a "defender of the disabled." Grisamore says his daughter's plight "took [his] empathy and commitment for families with special needs to a whole new level."
Grisamore's commitment is admirable on its face. But at what point does his talking about his daughter become exploitive?
Last November, Grisamore wrote an "As I See It" piece for the Star stressing the importance of organ donation. The column began with a description of the Grisamore family weeping, praying and launching balloons at Rebekah's grave site.
The recent feature story about Rebekah's gift to science closed with Grisamore talking about organ-donation legislation he's trying to pass.
And then comes the fundraising letter.
"To continue my fight for the disabled and their families, I need to raise significant funds for my re-election this year," Grisamore writes.
Encouraging people to donate their organs is one thing. Using Rebekah's story to hustle for campaign cash seems to be quite another.
Grisamore tells me that he sent the message to four people who work with and on behalf of those with special needs. But with a boldface request that readers forward it, the e-mail was obviously intended for a wider audience.
He says he's trying to appeal to a base of the disabled and their families. What others might find crass he describes as an effort to build grass-roots support. "The reality of politics is that in order to be re-elected, you've got to raise money," he says.
A suburban evangelical and father of eight, Grisamore can surprise you. His coherent rejoinders to criticism on left-leaning blogs suggest a brand-name law degree, not matriculation at Trinity International University, a divinity school in Deerfield, Illinois. (Last fall, lawyer and Democrat Steve Bough lauded Grisamore for responding “thoughtfully, intelligently and professionally” to a post on Blog CCP that took Grisamore to task on a variety of issues, including his pay as a nonprofit executive.) Grisamore's gelled hair and five o'clock shadow bring to mind a raffish lobbyist more than a churchgoing Republican.
And unlike many conservatives, Grisamore believes that government can accomplish things.
He talks about a constitutional amendment to mandate spending for those with disabilities and special needs. "I'm here to create a revolution for these folks," he says.
But one advocate for autism awareness regards Grisamore with the mistrust that nonbelievers hold for televangelists.
Sherri Tucker, co-founder of the Lee’s Summit Autism Support Group, says Grisamore has refused to meet with her group unless the event is held in public and he takes credit for work that her group is doing.
"Everything he does is to further his political career," she says.
Tucker says she's also put off by the frequency with which Grisamore talks about Rebekah. She says he mentioned Rebekah at a rally for disability rights in Jefferson City last month.
Grisamore says he hopes that his family's experience can be an inspiration to others.
Grisamore tells me that he regrets having offended anyone with the letter. But given the chance to second-guess his decision to include Rebekah's story in a solicitation for donations, Grisamore says he would not have done anything differently.
"Rebekah is very much a part of all this," he tells me.
Still, Grisamore might be wise to consider the hell that some right-wing commentators have unleashed on other public figures who have lost children. Ann Coulter once suggested that because John Edwards spoke about his son Wade so much, he needed an "Ask me about my son's death in a horrific car accident" bumper sticker. Glenn Beck called grieving Iraq War mother Cindy Sheehan a "tragedy pimp."
These attack artists might not be the most mainstream Republicans. But they've undoubtedly helped members of Grisamore's party dominate many statehouses — where, collectively, they've made life tougher for the vulnerable people for whom Grisamore says he's fighting.
The Voters Have Believed The Lies That Grisamore Spewed
Disappointed doesn't begin to describe it. Jeff Grisamore has literally made a living out of lying. He has never listed any occupation other than minister and charity work. He makes a six figure salary from his position in his charity. That is until he started using a "Christian" clearing house and no longer has to make public his donations. His charity also provided him with a car and a boat.
I have been told that his children receive free lunches and yet he insists that he understands the struggles of families. Really? How could you? You've never held a real job. You make money from a charity for widows and orphans. Your family has health insurance paid for by tax payers. Tax payers are paying for your children's lunches. And now you are having another child for the tax payers to support.
You reach out to families that have children with disabilities and tell them that you understand because you had a child with a disability. Prader Willi doesn't manifest itself until the child is older. You never had to fight a school district for services for your child. You have no idea what our families go through and how dare you suggest that you do. Your daughter's death was a terrible loss and I truly feel a great deal of sympathy for your family. However, don't use your child to make others believe that you understand their struggles. You don't have a clue.
You have lied, manipulated, and scammed honest families into supporting you. You tell them that you will be their voice. You raise their hopes. Then you do nothing. You lie and tell them what you think that they want to hear. You are good. But, you're not that good. You leave trails and intelligent people are finding them.
I'm so disappointed that your smear campaign and lies have once again netted you a place in Missouri politics. It just goes to show that voters do a poor job of finding out the truth about their candidates. Hopefully in two years they will do a better job. They won't have all of the big elections to think about and they might actually do their homework and find out that all is not what it seems.
I will continue to keep an eye on what is going on. I will continue to report on the issues that come up. I will not simply stand by and watch Jeff Grisamore lie and manipulate families so that he can work his way up the political ladder.
I have been told that his children receive free lunches and yet he insists that he understands the struggles of families. Really? How could you? You've never held a real job. You make money from a charity for widows and orphans. Your family has health insurance paid for by tax payers. Tax payers are paying for your children's lunches. And now you are having another child for the tax payers to support.
You reach out to families that have children with disabilities and tell them that you understand because you had a child with a disability. Prader Willi doesn't manifest itself until the child is older. You never had to fight a school district for services for your child. You have no idea what our families go through and how dare you suggest that you do. Your daughter's death was a terrible loss and I truly feel a great deal of sympathy for your family. However, don't use your child to make others believe that you understand their struggles. You don't have a clue.
You have lied, manipulated, and scammed honest families into supporting you. You tell them that you will be their voice. You raise their hopes. Then you do nothing. You lie and tell them what you think that they want to hear. You are good. But, you're not that good. You leave trails and intelligent people are finding them.
I'm so disappointed that your smear campaign and lies have once again netted you a place in Missouri politics. It just goes to show that voters do a poor job of finding out the truth about their candidates. Hopefully in two years they will do a better job. They won't have all of the big elections to think about and they might actually do their homework and find out that all is not what it seems.
I will continue to keep an eye on what is going on. I will continue to report on the issues that come up. I will not simply stand by and watch Jeff Grisamore lie and manipulate families so that he can work his way up the political ladder.
Monday, November 3, 2008
Bryce's Law
Bryce's LawWhat is Bryce's Law? This is a bill currently being considered in the Missouri legislature that creates the Missouri Special Needs Scholarship Tax Credit Program. (House Bill 1886 and Senate Bill SS/SCS/SBs 993 & 770) . Please play the quick video below from Representative Scharnhorst in which he shares why this bill is so important:
This program gives parents of special needs children with an IEP in a public school the choice to move their child to another public or private school using a special needs scholarship that will cover all or part of the costs as well as transportation to certain public schools.
Beginning with tax year 2008, a taxpayer would be able to claim a tax credit against a state tax liability equal to 80 percent of his/her contribution to a scholarship-granting organization. To read the current bill summary, click here
This bill is named after Bryce Scharnhorst (pictured above) who was the grandson of House Representative Dwight Scharnhorst. Bryce passed away last year from complications related to Autism and Epilepsy. Rep. Scharnhorst authored the House bill in Bryce's name because he recognized the education struggles that parents of special needs children face.
This program gives parents of special needs children with an IEP in a public school the choice to move their child to another public or private school using a special needs scholarship that will cover all or part of the costs as well as transportation to certain public schools.
Beginning with tax year 2008, a taxpayer would be able to claim a tax credit against a state tax liability equal to 80 percent of his/her contribution to a scholarship-granting organization. To read the current bill summary, click here
This bill is named after Bryce Scharnhorst (pictured above) who was the grandson of House Representative Dwight Scharnhorst. Bryce passed away last year from complications related to Autism and Epilepsy. Rep. Scharnhorst authored the House bill in Bryce's name because he recognized the education struggles that parents of special needs children face.
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Questions To Ask Jeff Grisamore
1. Are your children receiving free lunches?
2. Is is true that your wife is expecting again? Isn't Prader Willi a genetic disorder that is passed on from the father?
3. Did Bill Kenney pay for your house? Is is true that you don't have a mortgage?
4. Is is true that your charity is now going through a charity clearing house? Are there public records available to show what your charity revenues are and what salary you are being paid?
5. Did you vote against children with autism being able to go to a different school if their school was not doing it's job?
6. Have you demanded that the Lee's Summit school district start providing the services that children with special needs are federally guaranteed?
7. Did you ask to be on the Missouri Blue Ribbon Autism Panel and were told that NO Representatives were going to be on the Panel?
8. You stated that you were going to be on the Missouri Autism Commission. The list came out and you were not on it. Why not?
9. What is the name of the church that you were a minister at?
10. Have you ever worked for a public corporation? Does your resume only have charitable organizations for your employment?
11. Are you or have you received Medicaid for your family?
12. Did your charity provide your vehicle and boat? Are they still providing your vehicles?
2. Is is true that your wife is expecting again? Isn't Prader Willi a genetic disorder that is passed on from the father?
3. Did Bill Kenney pay for your house? Is is true that you don't have a mortgage?
4. Is is true that your charity is now going through a charity clearing house? Are there public records available to show what your charity revenues are and what salary you are being paid?
5. Did you vote against children with autism being able to go to a different school if their school was not doing it's job?
6. Have you demanded that the Lee's Summit school district start providing the services that children with special needs are federally guaranteed?
7. Did you ask to be on the Missouri Blue Ribbon Autism Panel and were told that NO Representatives were going to be on the Panel?
8. You stated that you were going to be on the Missouri Autism Commission. The list came out and you were not on it. Why not?
9. What is the name of the church that you were a minister at?
10. Have you ever worked for a public corporation? Does your resume only have charitable organizations for your employment?
11. Are you or have you received Medicaid for your family?
12. Did your charity provide your vehicle and boat? Are they still providing your vehicles?
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