We had an AUSOME Start to 2016!

If January is any indication, AUSOME is off to a great start. We thank you for your continued support. Your shares and referrals help us to get the word out about our programs in your communities. And it’s helping!

More and more we hear “I read about you”, or “my friend told me about this”. Please keep it up. Your ‘shares’, ‘likes’, ‘comments’ and ‘follows’ mean something. Over 60% of our participant registrations come from people who heard about us on social media.

We want everyone in Ottawa to know about AUSOME, so that every child with autism has the opportunity to participate in sports and recreation.

In January 2016:

• We announced a contract with Program Director, Anna Whyte.
• We hosted our first program ever – basketball!
• We were honoured to receive recognition and support at the Ottawa Sports Awards.

Introducing AUSOME Ottawa’s Program Director

Program Director Anna Whyte is an experienced autism behaviour therapist and volunteer. Her boundless enthusiasm is contagious. She believes that all children with autism should be able to be active members of the community and puts this into practice in everything she shares with our kids.

Basketball Fun

On January 28th, 2016, AUSOME Ottawa held its first ever program for kids with autism. Coach Merrick Palmer and a team of enthusiastic volunteers led the kids in an interactive program of games and individual skills practice. Basketball, like every program, started with a few minutes of free play with our volunteers, and then a group meeting. During this meeting, the kids were told exactly what was going to happen over the course of the hour. They counted down to a cheer, “3-2-1 AUSOME!” and they were off.

Coach Merrick led them through silly walks, ball handling drills and shooting skill development.

The kids took a break after about 30 minutes and enjoyed some orange slices. A few minutes before the hour was up (way too quickly), the kids gathered in a circle to discuss what they had learned and to share cheers for each other as they earned their AUSOME stickers.

We can’t wait to see you all next time!

Reminder: ,Before registering for your first event, please submit a general participant form. If you have done so, you can register for any age-appropriate event. We will be in touch if we have questions about your child.

AUSOME at The Ottawa Sports Awards

AUSOME Ottawa was thrilled to receive a $500 contribution and recognition at the Ottawa Sports Awards on Wed Jan 28th, 2016. It was a great evening honouring so many amazing Ottawa athletes, coaches, officials and volunteers.

We were excited to see Tommy DesBrisay win the Running (Road Racing) category, and we were pleased to chat briefly with his mom. If you haven’t heard of Tommy, a 24-year-old elite runner with autism, check him out on Youtube and on Facebook.

If this was just January, we can’t wait to see what happens in February!