NEWS
DECEMBER 2020
SEPTEMBER 2020
A Mobile Wonderland
Although Morgan's Wonderland, San Antonio's ultra-accessible theme park, is closed for the rest of the season due to COVID-19, they are continuing to bring joy to people with disabilities. On August 17th and 24th, ATC students and residents enjoyed a Morgan's Wonderland parade that visited our homes and school with music and lights. The parade featured the Morgan's Wonderland bus, vintage cars, and police vehicles from the San Antonio Police Dept. They were greeted with signs, cheers and lots of excitement from the ATC spectators! 
1st Class Divas Drive-Thru Parade
We have wonderful new friends in the 1st Class Divas volunteer group. ATC has been chosen as their adopted charity to receive needed funds, supplies, and fun surprises! We were happy to invite the group over when they asked to hold an event at our Dallas location. The Divas set up a drive-thru parade and spent the day handing out goodie bags full of activities and gifts, autism awareness buttons and bracelets, and even brought a special cake to enjoy. Everyone at ATC had a wonderful day and we are pleased to welcome the 1st Class Divas into the ATC family.
This is the Leek family. Monica (seated) is the eldest daughter of Len and Patty Leek and lives in one of ATC's Dallas area group homes. This is the first time in 6 months that the family has been all together.
When the world came to a halt in March, so did family visits. Due to Covid-19 many difficult restrictions and procedures were put in place by the State/County to protect our residents, their family members, and staff. This meant that families were no longer allowed to visit their loved ones in our group homes. Phone and video calls were arranged, but we all know that just isn't that same as a nice face-to-face chat. As restrictions eased the team began working on a way to bring our families safely back for long overdue visits. We are so excited to now be able to welcome our families for outdoor visits! It has been a long road and we are grateful for the patience and support of the Leek family. These photos also show our first patio makeover to provide a comfortable place for families to enjoy their time together. We have 17 more homes that will be getting a patio upgrade thanks to donations made during North Texas Giving Day. JULY 2020
Celebrations of birthdays and other milestones are very different for everyone right now, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be special. ATC team members work together to make sure every resident’s birthday is an occasion to remember. Direct care staff decorate the home and organize a party with the birthday boy or girl’s favorite meal and dessert to share with housemates. A special thanks to Princess, one of our Case Managers, who took time to shop for presents and deliver them wrapped in time for the big day. For ATC, caring for our residents means more than keeping them healthy and safe, it means creating and sharing moments to celebrate with them.
We still need your help. It is often difficult to purchase for all of our homes due to quantity restrictions. Click here to see how you can help keep the children and adults in our homes happy and healthy.
JUNE 2020
Parking lot pep rally!
We celebrated local teenager AJ Ortiz with a parking lot pep rally! During the time of COVID-19, AJ decided to fundraise for and donate more than 140 hours of service, in just 3 weeks, to create almost 200 handmade Autism Awareness key chains. He chose ATC as one of its benefactors, and presented a check of $576, having donated 30% of the proceeds to the ATC’s residential program for children and adults with autism. Click here to buy one of AJ’s puzzle keychains. MAY 2020
Plano Magazine is partnering with My Possibilities to feature #ChangeMakers in the disabilities community. Our very own Dr. Carolyn Garver is featured this month! She truly is a change-maker at ATC and everywhere she goes.
“I’ve never had two days alike here. I like seeing people achieve things; I like to see people succeed. Our individuals need our help, but they can achieve things we wouldn’t have thought possible,” Dr. Garver shared. “With the right support and education, you don’t know what they could achieve. Don’t count anyone out.” Click here to read the full article
What a great day! An amazing group of ATC staff and Roundup for Autism volunteers visited our community group homes (from a safe distance and with masks on). Our friends at Roundup provided a BBQ lunch and invited local musician Joshua Ingram to provide some entertainment. It was a special day for everyone! A big THANK YOU to all who helped make this happen.
A Ton of Kindness (literally!) Mary Helen Flores and family donated 2,000 pounds of fresh produce (of which ATC received 500 lbs!) to area group homes and nonprofits who support South Texas families and individuals with developmental disabilities. Her son's, Chef Michael Flores and Tommy Flores helped coordinate the pick at River City Produce of fruits and vegetables for our 7 group homes. Thank you, Mary Helen, for your generous gift and all this healthy food our residents will be enjoying this week!
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APRIL 2020Getting through this together! We have had so many wonderful supporters stop by with donations of food, supplies, and money they have raised to support our needs at this time. Here are just a few! Our friends with the Order of the Alhambra Caravan #269 delivered a check to ATC for $1,000 (left). A board member donated 4,000 rolls of toilet paper (middle)! Several members of the community have stopped by with donations of needed food and household supplies (right). We are so grateful for the continued support from our community!
Standing Together at ATC
Though our school, day programs, and therapy clinics are closed at our main campuses our dedicated staff continues to provide essential services to 128 children and adults who live in our community group homes. Our teachers have prepared lesson materials for at-home learning for our students and our therapists are using computers and iPads to provide speech therapy sessions online. Personal Care staff who live in our 24 group homes are making sure everyone is healthy and safe while organizing learning opportunities and fun activities. Days are filled with board games, puzzles, and time outside in the backyard. We truly could not carry on without our amazing team! MARCH 2020
Grant Announcement!
We are excited to announce that the San Antonio Area Foundation has awarded ATC a $50,000 grant to train more Board Certified Behavior Analysts on how to provide telehealth ABA services. Having more trained professionals providing therapy online will increase the number of families who are able to receive help. We can't wait to get started! Click here to learn more about the COVID-19 Response Fund and the caring businesses, donors, and foundations who have made this gift possible. 
Grant Announcement!
ATC received a $50,000 grant from The Dallas Foundation Covid-19 Relief Fund for supplies, staffing, and technology needed during this crisis. We are so thankful for this amazing support! JANUARY 2020
Rock N Roll Fundraiser
We had a great time at the Elvis Birthday Bash on January 12th! A BIG thank you to all our sponsors, volunteers, guests, and donors who made it such a special evening. We raised $7,000! DECEMBER 2019
Do you hear what I hear?
The 2019 Berkner High School "Encore" Choir stopped by our Dallas campus to sing Christmas carols with our students and adults. We're grateful for this talented group of students. What a wonderful surprise! MAY 2019
In May 2019 the Imagine Beyond Foundation hosted the 3rd Annual Tread Blue 5k Walkathon & Fun Run benefitting ATC. In a sea of blue shirts, volunteers, sponsors, and participants gathered at the Warren Sports Complex in Frisco to raise funds and awareness of autism.
The runners and walkers all had a great time and raised $15,700! A big thank you to the Imagine Beyond Foundation for their amazing support of ATC! 
Congrats to our 2019 Grads!
ATC congratulates our 2019 graduates, William and Jalen, on their dedication and hard-earned success! Congratulations also to the teachers, staff, and the entire support team for their tireless work to Change Lives and Build Futures everyday. 
Grand Opening in San Antonio
In May 2019, ATC cut the ribbon on our brand new 20,000 sqft. Learning & Opportunity Center! Check out our video from the celebration on our facebook page. We were honored to have opening remarks from U.S. Representative Will Hurd, Councilman Clayton Perry, District 10, and John Courage for District 9 . |
