Life’s WORC (www.lifesworc.org), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and autism through its residential, community and trust services, which this year is celebrating its 50th anniversary – Celebrate 50! – recently awarded ten new scholarships valued at over $11,000. The scholarships were provided to those who are financially-challenged so that they too can access Life’s WORC’s Family Center for Autism’s programs. These recent scholarships were awarded to individuals on the Autism Spectrum ranging in age from 10 to 22 years old. They are being used for classes and activities in the Children’s Breakfast Club, Friday Night Social Scene, Culinary Connections, Teen Zumba, Adult Baking, Teen Baking, Teen Technology, Teen Painting, among others.
Family Center for Autism’s scholarship funds are generated through private donations and enable the organization to offer scholarships ranging from $500 to $1,500 to pay for any of itsprograms. Since its inception in 2015, the program has awarded approximately 250 scholarships valued at over $250,000.
Pictured here participating in the Children’s Junk Art program is Phillip Hutchinson, 10 years old, from Laurelton, New York.
For more information about Life’s WORC’s Family Center for Autism and its Scholarship Program, visit: https://lifesworc.org/service/family-center-for-autism/ or call 516-355-9400 or
email: info@fcautism.org. . For more information about Life’s WORC and/or Celebrate 50 Commemorative activities, please contact Matthew Zebatto at 516-972-6053.
More About Life’s WORC
Life’s WORC was founded 50 years ago after the closing of Willowbrook State School back in the early 1970s. As a young reporter, Geraldo Rivera exposed the deplorable conditions that existed within the then largest institution in the nation serving children with developmental disabilities. Rivera first learned about these conditions from Life’s WORC founder Victoria Schneps. Her daughter, Lara, diagnosed at an early age with severe brain damage, was a resident at Willowbrook. When cuts in state funding caused the institution to fall into extensive disrepair, Schneps, along with other concerned individuals, picketed to fight for the rights of Willowbrook’s more than 5,000 residents. Rivera’s report, which earned him a Peabody Award, ultimately forced the closing of Willowbrook. Schneps started Life’s WORC and opened its first home in Little Neck, Queens. Its first residents were former Willowbrook residents.
Today, Life’s WORC provides beautiful homes located across the region, from Nassau and Suffolk to Queens and Manhattan, in addition to community services, financial and trust services, and the programs and services of its Family Center for Autism.
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