Puzzle Pieces has expanded its footprint by adding a satellite location in the former Rite Aid building just across the street from the nonprofit’s main campus. The new site will house its Autism and Behavior Services programs.
Puzzle Pieces, located at 2401 New Hartford Road, launched the Owen Autism Center in July 2020 and has now effectively changed its name to Autism Services. At its formation, the center offered services to families who needed support most during the pandemic.
“Although this wasn’t an ideal time given the pandemic, we felt it was important to begin these services because another local provider closed a similar program the year prior,” said Puzzle Pieces Director of Public Relations Ashley Wedding. “Local families were left without an option, and we wanted to provide the services these families needed.”
The program served 32 children during its inaugural year and has since grown to more than 60. Blaire Neighbors is the Director of Autism Services.
“Although Puzzle Pieces’ programming serves individuals with all disabilities, including autism, these typically have focused on adults,” Wedding said. “We knew there was a great need for targeted after-school and summer programming for children and teens with autism. Our Autism Services focus on executive functioning, communication, and independence skills, which help combat regression when the student is not in school.”
Olivia Hardy is the Director of Behavior Services, which began in October 2022. The program offers Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy and supports clients across several fields. In under 2 years, it has grown from 10 clients to 50 clients.
Puzzle Pieces moved to the New Hartford Road location in the former Daymar College building in 2019 because of the nonprofit’s exponential growth. Since then, Wedding said, all five of its programs have grown drastically, leaving minimal room for expansion on the 26,000-square-foot campus.
“With the help of our board, we made the strategic decision to move programming for our younger clients to this new satellite building,” Wedding said. “This move not only gave these programs space to grow, but it has allowed more space for our programs that remain on our main campus to spread out and grow as well.”
Autism Services serves school-aged individuals with autism from age 3 to 21. These individuals work in small groups to learn how to increase their independence and improve their social skills. Wedding said these educational activities are intended to prepare the individuals for the transition to employment and higher education.
The Behaviors Services program helps address and change targeted behaviors while also developing social skills, communication skills, and other relevant skills to build the individual’s independence.
Wedding added that the new building ensures everyone is in a successful environment.
“Our satellite campus gives us much-needed space. We have been able to spread out both programming and staff office space on our main campus,” she said. “We also see significant benefits in separating our services for our younger clients from our adult clients.”
The primary campus is home to a day training program for adults, where over 100 individuals with various disabilities work on social, communication, vocational, and independent living skills. Since the addition, Wedding said they’re no longer navigating the challenge of having infant and toddler clients receiving services adjacent to adults.
The new facility features multiple classrooms with pods and a large gathering space conducive to small and large groups. It also has a full kitchen, eating space, sensory rooms, and a recreation area with a ball pit, climbing wall, and trampoline.
Wedding said clients at Puzzle Pieces don’t age out either. The youngest client is 18 months old, while one individual is 63.
“The need for disability services in our community is incredibly significant,” Wedding said. “There is a waitlist for services across all Puzzle Pieces divisions and we will always place the quality of our programming as our top priority. It’s hard to come to terms with, but we simply can’t serve everyone. That is why we work very hard to collaborate with the other local organizations to help meet the needs of local families impacted by disabilities.”
