MEADVILLE —
On Monday it’s housekeeping. Thursday is cooking day. And on Tuesday, “we do whatever it is he feels like doing,” said Connie George.
Paul Pastrano, a 25-year-old living with Asperger Syndrome, participates in the Erie Homes for Children and Adults’ Autism Waiver Program. George, a staff member, visits Pastrano is his Meadville home regularly and works with him 20 hours a week on improving his housekeeping skills, cooking abilities and social interactions.
Pastrano lives independently and has been receiving these services since August 2009, when the program first started.
“Since Paul has been in the program, he has become more outgoing and social. We’ve worked on his cleaning and cooking skills. We are also working on budgeting, meal planning, and learning how to make his supplies last,” explains George. “He is working on his future goals.”
In addition, Pastrano has had the opportunity to network with peers and visit new places.
“The Autism Waiver Program has been good for me,” says Pastrano, “because it’s helped me feel not as isolated.”
April is Autism Awareness Month.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 1 in 110 people have an Autism Spectrum Disorder. This year, of the approximate 4 million children who will be born, about 36,500 of them will eventually be diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder. The national consortium of organizations known as Advancing Futures for Adults with Autism recognizes that roughly 80 percent of people with an Autism Spectrum Disorder are under the age of 22, but that in the next few years, many of those children will become adults. EHCA is proud to be one of the first providers for adults with autism in this area.
The mission of EHCA is to assist people with disabilities to live rich and fulfilling lives by providing quality, comprehensive and accessible residential and community-based services for children and adults with developmental disabilities throughout Erie, Crawford, Venango and Potter counties. Since 1912, EHCA has been caring for local individuals and striving to help everyone served reach their full potential.
Learn more
For more information on the Autism Waiver Program and the referral process, contact Bernadett Wilson at (814) 454-1534. The program is offered by EHCA to adults 21 and older who have an Autism Spectrum Disorder.
You can go
The Erie Homes for Children and Adults’ 10th annual Spring Swing, an evening of live entertainment and dancing, silent and live auctions, is April 29 at the Ambassador Center, Peach Street, Erie, from 6 to 11 p.m. Cost is $50 per person. The event benefits the EHCA’s endowment fund.
- More information: Visit ehca.org or call (814) 454-1534.
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Program helps to improve life of local living with Asperger Syndrome
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