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The Golisano Foundation donated $5 million to help make \u201cspace\u201d to strengthen the health and well-being of individuals on the autism spectrum and their families. PROVIDED<\/p>\n
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A new regional space has opened to strengthen the health and well-being of individuals on the autism spectrum and their families in Cape Coral last month.<\/p>\n
Family Initiative President and Co-Founder David Brown said first and foremost he wanted to highlight the incredible generosity of Tom Golisano for the unbelievable $5 million donation, which made the project possible.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe $5 million donation got us a long way to create this space for families and the community. We have an enormous amount of gratitude for him and his foundation,\u201d Brown said. \u201cUnbelievable. Literally transformative.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said someone of his stature \u2013 the name and reputation behind the Golisano Foundation is amazing to make that kind of investment in the work of Family Initiative.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a powerful gesture someone can do,\u201d Brown said. \u201cHis generosity definitely made this vision possible.\u201d<\/p>\n
Last month the official ribbon cutting was held for the Golisano Autism Community Hub.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Golisano Foundation is proud to support this mission, which reflects the Family Initiatives\u2019 growth and strong commitment to families affected by autism. This Hub will elevate best practices, encourage innovation, and strengthen programs that make a lasting impact,\u201d Golisano Foundation Executive Director Erica Dayton said in a prepared statement.<\/p>\n
He said there have been an abundance of conversations with families about this space.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt really felt like we wanted the hub to be a space and not a place,\u201d Brown said.<\/p>\n
The hub will be a space for regional conversations about health and well-being of individuals on the autism spectrum, bringing together ideas and possibilities, and funding opportunities and dreams that families have.<\/p>\n
Family Initiative Vice President and Co-Founder Anjali Van Dri said the hub is for families, professionals, and the community to have space to elevate the dialogue and new innovative ways to approach the work they do.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll of us believe when you bring people together, powerful and magical things can happen. It\u2019s a tenure journey \u2013 to keep bringing folks together and working together has led us to the growth and success we have had so far,\u201d Brown said.<\/p>\n
The Golisano Autism Community Hub is a large open hall area with a significant investment in technology. He said the technology piece will allow for national experts to participate remotely.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe just really want to be able to offer families access to worldclass education and information. This space allows us to do that,\u201d Brown said.<\/p>\n
He said the families are thrilled about the space \u2014 somewhere they can call their own. Programs and events will roll out in the coming months at the hub.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is the first phase of a multi-phase project for us with the whole campus in Cape Coral,\u201d Brown said.<\/p>\n
The next significant expansion is for Thrive Academy, the private school Family Initiative hosts.<\/p>\n
Thrive Academy currently has 30 students with the expansion allowing to take another 100 students next year.<\/p>\n
From here there will be a third phase, another significant expansion for clinical and diagnostic services.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s definitely a very significant need that moms and dads have expressed,\u201d Brown said.<\/p>\n
The fourth phase is for supportive living for young adults with autism spectrum.<\/p>\n
Brown said all of these phases will build out the full vision of the campus.<\/p>\n
He said he has been super fortunate and Family Initiative has been such a professional blessing for him.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor the last 10 years, I have not worked a day in my life. It\u2019s the greatest honor to work with these families and kids,\u201d Brown said.<\/p>\n
He said Cape Coral is an emerging market in the state of the Florida, as it is the fastest-growing city in the state.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt only made sense to launch the campus in Cape Coral to keep pace with the growth in the region,\u201d Brown said.<\/p>\n
Now Family Initiative is looking to expand to other sites across Southwest Florida. He said they are looking to add another campus on the other side of the county.<\/p>\n
We want to \u201cmake an effort to make sure every family in the region has access to the support that we offer,\u201d Brown said. \u201cThe majority of the students that receive services here, or attend Thrive Academy come from across Lee County. We see the draw and need. We will be excited as we open more locations and campuses to make that much more feasible and attainable for a lot more families not to travel all the way out to Cape Coral.\u201d<\/p>\n