AbilityFirst Sees Beyond Disabilities

For more than eight decades, California-based charity AbilityFirst has been serving special needs children and adults with cerebral palsy, autism, Down syndrome, and other physical and developmental disabilities. Established in 1926 by a group of compassionate citizens, two of which were Rotarians Paul Dietrich and Lawrence L. Frank, AbilityFirst started out as the Crippled Children's Society of Southern California. In 1999, the organization adopted its current name in order to better reflect its enhanced mission – to help not only children, but also adults; and to address the needs of not just people with physical challenges, but those with developmental disabilities as well.

Today, AbilityFirst has 24 locations throughout Southern California, including housing complexes, work centers, group homes, community centers, a camp, and an employment services office. Accredited by the American Camping Association and the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities, the organization is constantly working towards a society that values every individual by focusing on their capabilities instead of disabilities; a society that provides an equal opportunity for all people to lead productive lives.

To achieve its mission, AbilityFirst offers several socialization, recreational, and employment programs for both children and adults. For the former, these include after-school enrichment programs that teach important skills such as etiquette, making friends, computer skills, creative writing, gardening, arts and crafts, and more. Kids enrolled in an AbilityFirst after-school enrichment program are also brought to museums, community happenings, and sports events.

Meanwhile, AbilityFirst's adult programs assist men and women in pursuing activities that they find meaningful and interesting, thereby helping them reach their full potential. The organization's adult day programs are designed to nurture each individual's physical, cognitive, social, and creative skills. AbilityFirst also runs employment programs that place adults with developmental disabilities in jobs at one of the charity's work centers or at a company like AEG, Knott's Berry Farm, and DirecTV.