Heather Pepper -parent

"Our family had moved to Sudbury the beginning of June 2014 and this meant leaving services that had been well established in Hamilton. We came to Sudbury not knowing what would be cobbled together to meet our son's needs.  We were fortunate to hear about a new young adults program that was opening in June and were taking applications.  Joanne Bouchard was a ray of sunshine and enthusiastically invited  Sam to join the program as it opened June 2 this year. Sam blossomed in the program and for a change  - was eagerly getting up every morning to attend the program at the Adult Enrichment Center. Every day staff celebrate the unique qualities of each person and their family.  Special needs families don't often have anyone cheering on their kids for just being themselves. Joanne and her team do - and it brightens my day to see my son grinning with delight when I hear about his escapades at swimming or bowling with the program.  Thank you Joanne for having a dream and putting it in motion. We are very fortunate to have this exceptional program developed in our community to meet the exact needs of our kids."


Sincerely,

Heather Pepper



Paula Somers -parent

"My daughter Erica is 21 years old and has a diagnosis of  Cerebral Palsy.
She graduated from High School this June and we were in a panic this spring  as we had not been able to find a program that was appropriate for her to attend. A friend gave me the information on the Adult Enrichment Centre and after coming to see the facilities and meeting the staff and some of the clients we signed Erica up for a part time spot.  While there was a transition period for Erica as she does not do well with change we could not be happier."

"Erica is now attending full time and loves going to “school”  her speech is improving as well as her attitude at home.  The care she receives is superior to what was provided in High School especially the attention to grooming. I have been lucky enough to visit the centre on numerous occasions and the staff are always engaged with the clients. Everyone is participating/working to the best of their ability. While they all have different abilities, likes, wants and needs they accept each other as equals, even appear to watch out for each other. I also had the opportunity to see a group out in the community, while I did not stay around for very long as it can be disruptive especially when they know your name and want to talk. We have all seen special needs individuals out the community and we have seen how others stare, depending on the cognitive ability of the individual this can be upsetting, by taking them out as a group they are giving them the  protection and support of the group, they interact with each other and gain confidence."
 
"The only barrier to this program is the available funding, currently I am basically working to pay for my daughter to receive the programming she requires and deserves."

-Paula Somers


Anonymous -parent

"I am a parent who struggled to find a program to enrol my son in that he would enjoy going to every day, and that would challenge and push him to the best of his abilities. Thanks to the Adult Enrichment Center, I have to say my search is over. The Adult Enrichment Center is exactly what my son and  I were looking for. He looks forward to going and comes home with a big smile every day, and I see a big change in his personality as well as no stress or anxiety. He is making big strides in his growth and he keeps surprising us with what he knows and is capable of. I would highly recommend the Adult Enrichment Center to anyone looking for the proper atmosphere for continued learning a fun for their loved one."


-Anonymous 




Shannon O'Reilly -participant

What do you like about the Adult Enrichment Center?

"I like seeing my friends every day and learning different things and meeting the staff every day." 


What do you learn at the Adult Enrichment Center?

"I learn math like rounding money, telling time, subtraction, addition, multiplication, and algebra. We do money stuff like making change and learning about saving money. We do reading and writing and table activities. I like the group reading like when someone reads to the group. I like reading to my friends and helping them read."


What do you do every day at the Adult Enrichment Center?

"We come in in the morning and then we have circle in where we share any exciting news with everyone. We do life skills, and that's where we come into the classroom, do reading and writing, or go on the computers. We also do cleaning in the afternoon and awareness where we talk about street awareness, cyber bullying, kitchen safety, stranger awareness, personal awareness, and we read our code of conduct. We dance and e-mail our parents about our day."


What kind of outings do you go on at the Center?

"Swimming, bowling, laundry, grocery store, the movies, the mall, volunteering at the old age home, library, walks to the park, lunch outings, 



Jade Gribbons -participant

Do you like coming to the Adult Enrichment Center?

"Yeah I love coming to the AE Center!"


What is your favourite thing about the Adult Enrichment Center?

"Making lunches, getting my hair curled, getting my nails done, going to the mall…Umm going to work with Mel at the hair dressers! Probably like math, reading, and I think that's it!"


What do you do every day when you come to the Adult Enrichment Center?

"I do my workbook writing, then snack, awareness, math, umm then lunch, geography, science, history, and reading. Umm OH and arts and crafts, and beauty and hygiene!"


What are your favourite outings at the Adult Enrichment Center?

"Mall and movies, LaSalle Residence, and swimming." 


"Oh and we also go to the park, laundry mat, lunch at Osaka Sushi, library, and I think that's everything!



Donna Trottier -participant

"Since I have been coming to the Adult Enrichment Centre, the staff here showed me a lot of things I can do.  I do not say no more that I can’t, I do.  They go for walks, we go to the grocery store, we go out bowling, we go out swimming, we go shopping.  They do my makeup and they make you feel so good about yourself that I did not know that I had that quality in me but now that I have been going here, the staff here showed me the things I can do for myself.  I love the feeling of this place.  I did not know that I could not read but now I am doing better, I go bit by bit.  I work on the computer.  I just did not know how beautiful this place was, its the most beautiful place to come, people here are so happy and so beautiful.  I have been showed the happiness that I have never had before. Thanks for Joanne and all the staff here for showing me the love that I did not know I can do. I would just like you to know that people like us can do things that no one else can know what we can do and it really makes us feel better. I hope this note will make you understand that people like us, can do things that other people did not know we can do."


-Donna Trottier

Anne Godfrey -parent (Sault Ste Marie)

My son Thomas is 25 years old and was ready for new adventure. My husband and I wanted that for him but we were very concerned that he be in a safe environment where he could grow in a protected environment. We found this and so much more when the Adult Enrichment Centre opened in Sault Ste Marie. In April of 2016 I found out that the Centre was opening in SSM so I reached out to see if it would be a fit for Thomas. Joanne called me and her enthusiasm for the program and her genuine love for her clients left me feeling like this was indeed the program we’d been waiting for. Thomas was client number 1 at the Sault Ste Marie centre and has enjoyed a great program of life skills, community outings and has recently added volunteering at the Re-Store to his schedule. AEC has been a perfect fit for Thomas and for our family. He comes home each and every day feeling proud of what he accomplished that day and excited for tomorrow.

Thank you to Joanne and the amazing staff at the Adult Enrichment Centre

The Godfrey Family

Jonathan Marcil- Participant 

"I love coming to the center because I get to see my friends. I learn different things like life skills, different topics and about myself.  I get to participate in music therapy, sing and dance. I always have fun when I come to the center. I love to volunteer at Giant Tiger, Kuppajo and at the Sudbury Five games. I look forward to learning something new every time I come to the center. I love going on different outings like the mall and the library".