Tell Us What You Do
We offer weekend community outings and socialization for teens and adults with special needs while providing respite for caregivers. When you sign up with us, you get eight hours of respite, and your teen or adult with diverse abilities gets eight hours of fun!
We Go Where the Fun Is
Our community inclusion and socialization outings are designed to give our participants a sense of independence from their caregivers, parents, and guardians, to be free to make their own memories and build friendship in their own unique way. All of our participants receive supervision and care from trained staff. We like to call our staff, “the fun staff!” Our staff plays, laughs, jokes, and they are focused on creating memorable times with your loved one. We know how limited life can be for some individuals with special needs, and we want to give teens and adults with diverse abilities the opportunity to see new places and explore new things with friends face-to-face.
But Wait – There’s More
We also work on life skill goals such as cooking, sportsmanship, as we cook together and play adaptive sports when we arrive back to our meeting place. We also work on HCS and parent-requested goals. Our owner and trainer has over 13 years as a special education teacher and holds a Master’s degree in education, so we are well-prepared to work with you and your diverse learner. We like to keep our fees minimal at $95.00 for eight hours of fun and respite for families.
Call and speak with Deme at 972-322-1006 for more information.
Tell Us Your Story and How You Got Started
Truth is – I love individuals with special needs. I have ever since I was in college. I knew I wanted to be a special education teacher. I know diverse learners are some of the best people on this planet. I think they have beautiful smiles and incredible perseverance. They have to work at least twice as hard as other kids to get to the same place. Some of them never get there, but that’s okay too, as long as they find their own place in this world.
As a special education teacher, I believe parents of children with special needs are worthy of praise and respect just for getting up every morning and putting one foot in front of the other. Unless you have been through this yourself, there is no way you can understand what they go through on a regular basis.
I know parents who have multiple doctors, physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, parent-teacher conferences, IEP (Individual Educational Plan) meetings, and sometimes surgery(s) to name just a few. Many times the news isn’t positive and parents walk away very discouraged. Yet most of these parents learn to see the positive and celebrate the progress their child does make. I respect this and feel they are the true unsung heroes in our time.
I know through countless talks with my former parents being a parent of a child with special needs can be isolating. There just isn’t time in the schedule to socialize. Additionally, many times it is hard to get a sitter who works well with their child. I’ve seen and recommended respite to many of parents.
And one day it occurred to me, “Deme, why don’t you be the solution to this challenge?” Not just for parents but for individuals with special needs that are limited in their socialization and community outings opportunity with friends. So begins the birth of Diverse Abilities Weekend Respite & Fun!