By Daniel Axelrod, The Times-Tribune, Scranton, Pa.
Jul. 6–Patti Duguay used to worry about soda machines. Her autistic son Douglas, 10, was so fascinated by the tall, brightly colored drink dispensers he would become stubbornly fixated on them.
That was until Friendship House’s clinical specialist Melissa St. Ledger explained them to him.
“Now, when I show him a soda machine he says, ‘OK, Mommy, we put the money in and get a soda,'” said Ms. Duguay, of Waverly. “Friendship House is great. As a parent of an autistic child, there are so many services we need that aren’t out there. They need to expand.”
Friendship House’s leaders agree. Five years after beginning educational and enrichment programs for autistic children, the Scranton-based nonprofit wants to grow to meet heavy local demand.
With a $15 million annual budget and 300 employees in Scranton, Philadelphia, Pottstown, Pottsville and Honesdale, Friendship House is among Eastern Pennsylvania’s largest providers of mental health and welfare services for children.
But its East Mountain location is maxed out, serving 67 autistic children. So, in the next month, its leaders will decide whether to construct a new building, add to existing structures or renovate them to accommodate 120 children.
Whatever they decide as they meet with architects, they hope to break ground by November and finish in 18 months.
“We’d like to be the hub for autism services in Northeastern Pennsylvania,” said Friendship House President Robert Angeloni. “We have a great need in this region, and the resources have not matched the needs.”
Now, the 137-year-old organization’s leaders must consult donors before beginning an expansion. Friendship House currently has $1.7 million in cash and pledges raised from that capital campaign, which began in 2004.
But those donors pledged to build a center for children staying there while undergoing mental health treatment. The nonprofit changed its priorities in 2007 following overwhelming demand for autism services and a state shift toward foster care and school-based therapy for children with mental health issues.
For now, the Maple Street building’s staff are enjoying the $85,000, 3,000-square-foot addition of therapeutic rooms opened June 23 for roughly 20 autistic children.
Staff members use the latest approaches to teach autistic individuals from 18 months old to age 21, tracking their success learning skills for daily living, communicating and socializing. And they have big future goals.
“We’d like to provide cradle to tomb services for people on the autism spectrum,” said Mary Christine Remick, the nonprofit’s clinical director for autism services.
Contact the writer: [email protected]
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