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April Cause Spotlight: ACT Today!

With April being Autism Awareness Month, we are joining in the efforts and highlighting our cause partner, ACT Today!, for this month’s cause spotlight. ACT Today! is an organization that provides care and treatment through ABA therapy for children with autism. Timely and intensive ABA therapy has an 80-90% chance of showing significant improvement in children with autism. ACT Today! provides assistance for these children today to ensure they have a better tomorrow. In addition to educating our readers on the organization, we thought it would be even more valuable to share some stories of grant recipients and letters of gratitude that we have received from ACT Today!

John, age 4, Tennessee

In their grant application, his mom wrote:
“We just received a diagnosis that is world changing for us, but we are optimistic of the future. My husband works very hard every day and I am a stay-at-home mother. I homeschool our oldest child.

We are in need of an iPad for my son. He has a very hard time communicating and I think this will help so much. There is a program made for Apple that is being used to assist children like my son. I’m hopeful it will be a great tool. So far the support we are getting is amazing. Our son has began therapy in many forms and is set up for more programs over the next month. We are already seeing improvements, but I know this iPad would strengthen my son’s communication even more. We’ve had many recent hardships and our savings is exhausted. This opportunity means a lot to us. Thank you!”

ACT Today! granted John an iPad for communication.

This is the thank you letter we received from his mom:
“Thank you so much for helping my son get a tablet! He learns best from electronics and it was devastating that we couldn’t afford one ourselves. By using his iPad for 30+ days combined with speech therapy we are finally getting him to start communicating. He is starting to tell me what he wants to eat, when he pees in his diaper, and is engaging in stories! This means everything to us and we are very thankful for your help!”


(A note from John’s teacher)

Colston, 4 years old, Ohio

In their grant application, his mom wrote:
“I am a single mother providing for three children. Colston is overall a happy-go-lucky boy, however due to Autism he lacks communication and ability to process instruction. He frequently elopes as soon as I turn to address another one of my children. No matter how much we divert him, he is like a magnet and drawn to the street in front of our home. Due to this, I try not to take him outside which affects our ability to work with his coordination issues as well. I’m just in such fear that he will be hit and killed in a split second like this. I want to protect my son and provide a safe environment for him to play, socialize and that we could work with his poor motor skills.”

ACT Today! gave this family a grant for safety fence to keep Colston safe.

This is the thank you letter we received from his mom:
“Part of our daily battle Colton is drawn to the road and would elope. I have two other children, when I would turn for a second to address them and bam, he was gone. I was so terrified to even take him outside because it was so bad. I couldn’t stand the thought of losing him from something like this. I started looking for options as it was very hard to put a large sum of money on a fence right away. He desperately needed it as quickly as possible. I came across ACT Today!. They were very kind and so willing to help. The process was seamless and I’m ever so grateful. Thank you to everyone at ACT Today! for everything you have done and for assisting in keeping Colton safe.”


Reagan, 12 years old, California

ACT Today! gave Reagan a grant for Speech Therapy

This is the thank you letter we received from her mom:
“Your team never gave up on Reagan. I was pleasantly surprised to finally encounter people like you who actually cared. You ALL show great compassion for children in need. Your team never gave up on my little girl when so many others in the past have. We will be forever grateful to you. Not only for your contribution to her education, but for your good hearts. It’s something I will never forget, and I sincerely thank you for helping my baby girl and others children with special needs.”

Jace, 3 years old, Texas

While some insurance companies now cover ABA Therapy, families are still struggling to afford the co-pay for every session. With a recommended 40 hours per week of therapy, the $20 co-pays were starting to add up for Jace’s mom.

In their grant application, his mom wrote us requesting a grant to help with insurance co-pay for ABA Therapy:
“I am a single mother with 2 children. At this point, I am thankful to have parents who are able to help me out minimally with childcare and room and board, indefinitely. My son is my sole responsibility. It is rare that his father sees him. He just doesn’t have the time for him. I quit my job so that I could do anything & everything possible to find my son the help he needs. Early intervention is key I’m told. CARD has handed my son a golden ticket without having to be on a waiting list for over a year. CARD accepted him and the insurance approved services (40 hours a week) so I have been driving him into San Antonio daily, Monday through Friday, for therapy.”

ACT Today! gave Jace a grant for ABA Therapy Co-Pays

This is the thank you letter we received from his mom:
“Thank you so much ACT Today! for awarding my son, Jace, with a grant that will help us with the daily insurance co-pay for ABA Therapy. I am a single mother of two. My son was diagnosed on the spectrum at the age of 27 months and I was fortunate to get him in a CARD facility within 2 months of his diagnosis, where he has since been receiving intense ABA 40 hours a week, Monday through Friday. At the beginning of 2016 Jace was nonverbal, unresponsive to his name or simple commands, did not interact or seek attention, no eye contact and so on. He is now a completely different little boy and I am so thankful to all. He walks into the room wherever I am and will say “Hi mommy” and walks right back out. I drive a total of 128 miles every day just to drop him off and pick him up, and it has been worth every mile. God is good. My cup overfloweth.”
It’s stories like these that keep us inspired, and we hope they inspire you as well! Shop all products that help ACT Today! here.

Happy April, everyone!

Love,
The ONEHOPE Team

Image: http://cliparts.co/large-puzzle-piece-template

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