Thanks to the generosity of board member Adam Fernsler and Frank Peno, ACRES now has a facility -- a 2,000 sq.foot former group home located on a beautiful 2 acre rural property in Patton Township. The house is located across the street from the walking trails at Bernel Road Park and a planned indoor sports facility, so we are very excited! 

Extensive renovations are needed before ACRES can "move in", and are continuing at a breakneck pace. Over the past few months, contractors and volunteers have cleared brush, painted cabinets, installed drywall, and cleaned at the house, and we have received generous donations of furniture, tools, and craft supplies from community members to outfit our new home. We hope to be able to open our facility later this spring.

Despite all the renovation chaos, the house is already becoming a safe and welcoming place for adults with autism. One of our volunteers, a single mother of an adult son with autism, writes:

"Whenever I take him somewhere new or start a new routine, Alex usually fights with me to stay in the car and struggles vehemently to persuade me to go home. But now when we pull up to the ACRES house and I say "do you want to go see your friends?" he smiles so sweetly and follows me into the house! Yesterday he actually preceded me through the front door! That may not seem like a lot to you, but to me, it is a HUGE triumph."

We're thrilled that ACRES is already having such an impact, and can't wait until our home is ready to move in to later this spring. A big THANK YOU to all who volunteered their time and talents at the house!