HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — Finding the right school for children living with autism and other special needs can be very challenging for parents, so a group of families, educators and therapists are working together in Tampa to build their own.
Lindsey Meyer and April Hurley are counting down the days until Evolve School of Learning opens in August.
“We plan to have anywhere from 45 to 60 to maybe 70 kiddos; it really depends on the needs of those kids,” said Meyer as she gave ABC Action News a behind-the-scenes tour of the construction.
Most of the students in the inaugural class have already been coming to see Lindsey and April for years at their one on one therapy center, Bridging the Gap.
“It was life-changing,” said parent Amanda Himmelberger. “When he started, he had no words at all, totally non-verbal, and now he’s telling me good night, mama, every night.”
“There is not one person that I met that has worked for Lindsey and April that does not treat my son like a person; he’s not overlooked, he’s not looked at as a problem,” said parent Maureen Mongelli.
So when these parents started asking Lindsey and April to open up a whole special needs school, it was impossible for them to say no.
“A moment hit where things weren’t aligning for other opportunities for these kids and we just looked at each other, alright right, we are doing this now; we are starting a school,” said Meyer.
“It’s just the rewarding aspect of hearing their celebrations at home that fulfills us,” said Hurley.
The families and therapists even started their own non-profit organization, The Evolve Foundation, to raise money to help build the school, which will be located on the same property as Bridging the Gap.
“It’s helpful that we have someplace to go that we know people are going through the same things that we are,” said Mongelli.
The students even sent pictures to Taylor Swift, asking her to shake off a little help.
“Maybe she’ll give us a shout-out at her concerts in Tampa, really any word from her would raise a lot of attention,” said Speech Language Pathologist Michelle Criespi.
For more information,CLICK HERE.
