Corporate Generosity Drives SOCIAL SKILL PROGRAM Success

“Two years ago, our son Nicholas was diagnosed with autism. This past Fall, Nicholas joined one of the social skill-building groups and he made me so proud. When I think back to the smile on his face because he knew he was going to see his Geneva ‘teachers’ and friends and I think back to the wonderful accomplishments he made, I still have tears in my eyes.

Nicholas began school this year and lots of transitions happened for him. With Geneva by his side to give him the tools to begin socializing with his peers at school, this will be with him forever.”
- Debbie Santangelo

Navigating the usual social interactions at school and work can be an obstacle for someone with an ASD. They struggle everyday to communicate and interact with people they can’t relate to while trying to adopt social standards they don’t understand.

Our Social Skills Program is a core support area for individuals with autism.  But it is not funded by the government.  A multi-year commitment by organizations like BMO Financial Group, The Paloma Foundation, RBC Foundation, CIBC, Lloyd Carr Harris Foundation and Harry E. Foster Foundation has enabled the Centre to provide these new and important programs.

Every week, groups of five or six participants meet with trained facilitators and volunteers to learn specific social skills like sharing, turn-taking, coping with teasing, expressing emotions and general social interaction. Each group also focuses on specific autism related challenges such as dealing with anxiety and coping with change.

As the diagnostic rate of autism rises, so too does the need for these programs. To enable the growing number of families dealing with autism to access this core program, we continue to solicit funding support from the community.