Executive Director Letter
Dear Readers,
Autism Connection of PA and Statewide Advocacy
Our first priority every day is answering your next help request. I recently read a book called "Essentialism" and in that I learned that the word "priority" was singular for its first 400 years of use. People ask us, when they notice our work with and for adults, "do you still help families of little kids?” The answer is “yes!” Through our Autism 101 classes (which most often include an autistic adult co-teaching, per their availability) to Trunk or Treat, holiday events, seminars, support groups, and conference, families (who started our organization) remain our priority. And as people age with autism, or grow into and discover their autism, our priority at that stage is their health, safety, and happiness, however they define that for themselves. Everything that is important to you, is important to us.
We proudly remain an independent nonprofit, always grateful for your moral and financial support that "fills our sails" (an idiom that means, gives us energy and resources) and keeps us answering phones, communicating over email, texting, or otherwise messaging with people who need help via their best communication style. Because of you we engage advocacy and important discussions which we hope will lead to change. Like all independence, our status comes with some challenges, and also allows us freedom to do our best work without constraints of bureaucracy and heavy-handed oversight that larger national nonprofits or government bodies have. So it is ironic that some of my time over the past couple of years has been spent in meetings with government agencies like the Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) under the Department of Human Services (DHS) and the Victims Services Advisory Committee (VSAC), reporting to the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD). Sadly, the common thread between all of these is a focus on the prevention of abuse, neglect, or exploitation of vulnerable people with disabilities. This is not fun work, but it is necessary as we start to understand the scope and depth of victimization in our population and how much change is required to address it.
Lately I have been thinking about having an overarching principle to use in decision-making, and the word that sticks with me is "Dignity." No, we're not rebranding to "The Dignity Connection of PA!" But when the next email help request lands in our inbox, or we get messaged at 11 PM on a Friday, having a