Neil Sanders is creating his latest pieces of art, glazing ceramics so they’re ready to finish in the kiln.

What You Need To Know

  • Autism Services, Inc. provides day services for 90 adults with autism with site-based and community-based programs

  • Many of those services were shutdown at times during the pandemic, disrupting important parts of some people's lives

  • The day services reopened in February, returning a sense of normal for those who count on them

Twice a week, he goes to Autism Services in Amherst as part of the Day Habilitation Without Walls program. Neil has autism and lives at home with his sister.

"I enjoy Day Hab without Walls," Sanders said. "I’ve been coming here for four years. I’ve been doing this since 2017."

He and the others here participate in a variety of activities. They also exercise to Richard Simmons videos, take trips to the park, the mall and grocery stores. They also volunteer for Meals on Wheels.

"They can show up every day and there’s predictability. There’s their routines because many of them stick to routines," said Veronica Federiconi, Autism Services, Inc.'s CEO.

She says the goals for people in this program is to help them move on to jobs or volunteer work.

"They’ve worked toward independence all of their lives," Federiconi said. "When we are not here, they are not happy people."

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they’ve had to shut down these day services twice for months at a time for people like Neil Sanders, who says that was tough on him.

"Yes, it was really difficult," he said. "Because of the coronavirus which we are still dealing with, but it’s going to be over before you know it."

"When they don’t attend and they’re sitting at home, many of our families don’t have the ability to take them out and do the activities that they’re used to doing when they’re here," Federiconi said.

While the programs were closed, Federiconi made sure they stay connected through frequent Zoom meetings.

"I did not want them to think that everything just went away and they would never return to normalcy," she said.

And that return did come again in February when the day services reopened for the second time, and Neil and the others could resume what’s become a critical part of their lives.

"Now that the weather’s getting warmer, we are going to be doing park outings as the summer season progresses," Sanders said.