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LOCATIONS Highland Hills 4255 Northfield Road Highland Hills, OH 44128 Lakewood 14587 Madison Avenue Lakewood, OH 44107 Camp Cheerful 15000 Cheerful Lane Strongsville, OH 44136 Strongsville-Therapy Services 15000 Cheerful Lane Strongsville, OH 44136 INFORMATION For more information and referrals 2 0 0 6 A nn U A L REP or T 216.292.9700 www.achievementcenters.org Our Nourishing Environment Dear Fellow Gardeners, About the Achievement Centers for Children Yes, we do mean gardeners. As you will read in this We are a nonprofit agency that families call a source annual report, we are celebrating our agency’s growth of hope, a place of achievement and a center of support and strength through parent and volunteer Karen Sorace- and expertise for children with special needs. Thomas’ wonderful story of the acorn. Since our founding in 1940, we’ve earned a reputation As Karen talks about her two sons, one who has cerebral for excellence in helping children with a wide range of palsy and the other who is autistic, she uses a powerful meta- disabilities lead productive lives through: phor of acorns and trees; who would think that an acorn had • Customized physical, occupational and speech therapies the phenomenal potential to become a mighty oak tree? • Education and childcare programs At the Achievement Centers, the therapists, educators, social workers and all our staff • Camping and recreation opportunities see that potential and work diligently to assure that each child’s potential is reached. • Nationally-recognized autism programs • Family support services So the acorn has a very special meaning to us. We use it internally to acknowledge actions that go above and beyond and to celebrate special achievements. It is a We believe in creating a circle of support that encompasses symbol of our mission and our passion for assisting children with disabilities and their the entire family, because by helping the whole family, families in becoming all that they can be. a child with special needs has the greatest opportunity to achieve. Without a good foundation of nourishing soil, however, acorns cannot grow. Without a good foundation of nourishing soil, however, OUR MISSION is to work with children with disabilities acorns cannot grow. and their families to strengthen abilities and create opportunities for lifelong achievement in society. Through your generous support of the Achievement Centers – your careful tending of our garden – children with disabilities and their families have the opportunity to reach their potential. Thank you for making our 2005/2006 harvest so full and rich. It would not have been possible without you. Sincerely, Patricia W. Nobili, MSSA Bruce G. Higley Executive Director President, Board of Directors 2 Ask parents of a child with a disability and they will tell you that more Ask parents of a child with a disability and they will tell you that more often than not, people focus on what their child can’t do rather than often than not, people focus on what their child can’t do rather than what what he or she is capable of. Needless to say, we were floundering in a workers helped us rediscover hope and he or she is capable of. world we didn’t want to be in, frightened, find new direction in our lives. lost and desperate. Following the advice Ask leadersleaders ofof non-profitsnon-profits and and it it is is likely likely that that you you may may hear hear a asimilar similar of the doctor, we contacted the County In their work with children these remark- story. It’s easy to focus on an agency’s day-to-day challenges instead Board of Mental Retardation & Develop- able people are blind to limitations and story. It’s easy to focus on an agency’s day-to-day challenges instead of mental Disabilities and the Achievement are keenly aware of potential. The people itsof itspotential. potential. Centers for Children. who work with our children are nothing short of visionaries. Not long after that I began to notice what But when KarenKaren andand StanStan ThomasThomas came came toto thethe AchievementAchievement Centers,Centers, I thought were strange behaviors on the I like acorns….. our staffstaff recognizedrecognized in in their their children children a agreat great potential. potential. That That recognition recogni- part of our biological son, Mark. Although tioninspired inspired Karen Karen Sorace-Thomas Sorace-Thomas to create to create a metaphor a metaphor that means that means a great a doctors, family, and friends all told me I was I like the color, the texture, the shape imagining things, by the time Mark was 18 and the idea of what they are. greatdeal to deal us at to the us Achievementat the Achievement Centers; Centers; it embodies it embodies our belief our that belief children that months old I knew I was seeing autism. childrenwith disabilities with disabilities and their andfamilies their can, families with thecan, right with nurturing, the right surpassnurturing, so I carry them around, keep some in my Another dream shattered. classroom and at home. If I were to offer surpassmany expectations. so many expectations. you one and ask you to tell me what it Once again we turned to the was, you probably would say “an acorn” Achievement Centers for Children. and you would be right. But, I have a feeling that if I posed the same question This Is The Thomas Family’s Story: Our sons cannot care for themselves to my sons’ therapists or social workers, or speak. Nick cannot feed himself, the reply would be “an oak tree.” My name is Karen Sorace-Thomas. I am a wife, a teacher, an artist, an advisor stand, or walk, nor can he sit up without and a host of other things, but most importantly I am a mom. My husband and assistance. there is quite a long list of In the right circumstances, given water I have two beautiful, happy sons. One is adopted and the other “homemade,” things that our sons cannot do. the loss and nourishment and sunlight, the and they are three months apart. of hope and the loss of dreams are very acorn becomes an oak tree. The staff at significant losses and they strike at the the Achievement Centers looks beyond As any parent will tell you, when a child is born, you are awestruck at the limitless very core of who you are. physical presence and sees pure unlim- possibilities and opportunities that await that child. After all, what is a new life if ited potential. not pure unlimited potential? We were on top of the world and making plans for Although there is no protection from the future. We had our legacy – two beautiful, healthy sons! that loss, we have found that in the right Because of the support of the hands you can rediscover hope, build BecauseAchievement of the Centers, support I can look at The euphoria didn’t last long. other dreams, and find new direction. my beautiful sons and see, not small In our case, “the right hands” were those ofacorns, the butAchievement mighty oak trees. Centers, Our adopted son, Nick, was diagnosed with schizencephaly, a form of cerebral of the Achievement Centers. I can look at my beautiful sons palsy, when he was 6 months old. The prognosis wasn’t good. We were told he and see, not small acorns, would be profoundly mentally retarded and significantly physically disabled. Our association with the Achievement Quite a departure from our imagined future where he would be “starting” for Centers for Children has shown us that but mighty oak trees. Notre Dame! the long list of things that our sons cannot do is insignificant compared to the things they can do. The therapists and social 4 2 The Achievement Centers for Children’s autism services Achieve Consulting continue to grow and expand. More and more children continue to be diagnosed with autism. Because their education is very staff-intensive, we created a new venture, Achieve Based on the success of our preschool program, we created Consulting, which provides educators with the resources they need to a Kindergarten – 2nd grade classroom; we formed Achieve effectively help these students. Consulting to share our autism expertise with schools so Drawing upon our deep expertise in treating young children with autism that they can learn more about effective education for this and using a methodology that successfully combines many proven models, challenging disorder; and our Sensational Day Camp for Achieve Consulting offers school districts: school-age children with autism underwent a transformation • Individual student consultation • Design, development and implementation of a new autism classroom to make it more successful than ever. • Ongoing program consultation • Training for professionals and para-professionals Though Achieve Consulting is just getting off the ground, our first three- Sensational Day Camp day para-professional training in 2005 was attended by 27 participants representing over 10 school districts. In response to a community need for an extended school year pro- gram for children with autism, the Achievement Centers for Children redesigned its summer Sensational Day Camp to encompass two The Thomas Family Learns four-week sessions. In treating this complex syndrome, consistent and intensive therapy and education is an important key to success. When Karen and Stan thomas connected with the Achievement Centers for Children, they rediscovered a sense of hope for their family - a glimmer Each week at Camp Cheerful during their session, children received of what the acorns could become. therapeutic riding, occupational therapy and speech therapy in addition to participating in education-based activities linked to their school year’s It was at the Achievement Centers’ Lakewood facility where it “just Individualized Education Program (IEP) goals.

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