Hello NESS family and friends! A new season is upon us and the NESS Team is excited for the upcoming months. As we look forward to brighter days, we continue to notice families in need of support for essential items.
Our Covid-19 packages, created in the break of the pandemic, continue to bring comfort, protection and smiles to families across New York. We understand that marginalized groups within our community have been heavily hit and we have taken initiative to equip these members with both essential items of protection and tools that promote positivity, learning and fun.
These care packages give families one less thing to worry about in an ever changing life.
The packages include a variety of items including: face masks, shields, hand sanitizer, arts and craft supplies and activity books for children.
Through our Non-Profit 501c3 organization NESS Cares, Inc., we have recently raised $750 which has given us the ability to further extend our efforts to reach families in need within the community.
As a result of the success of these Covid-19 boxes, we are now excited to launch our new project, NESS Sensory Boxes.
Sensory Boxes, just as the Covid-19 care packages, are created with ASD/Autism needs in mind. These boxes include a variety of tools that encourage sensory play and learning. In doing so, we hope to improve their communication skills and help them moderate their moods simply and independently without spending their often limited funding.
With many children still learning in a virtual setting, many parents have taken notice of the difference in their child’s learning experience due to lack of socialization. Many people with ASD have sensory difficulties that lead to anxiety and discomfort. According to this study from early in the lock-down, kids with autism had more incidents of hyperactivity and irritability by 40%, and aggressiveness and moodiness have also gotten worse.
Another study concludes that 41.5% of children with ASD have begun presenting more intense and more frequent behavior problems since the start of quarantine. Caregivers and autistic children alike need a simple form of therapy that is easy and fun therapy that kids can use independently.
Sensory toys engage multiple senses and modes of thinking to help people with ASD mediate their exposure to external stimuli, improve communication and ease anxiety. Our sensory boxes bring the learning home by equipping children with tools similar to their experience in face-to-face settings, bringing back comfort to their new learning experience.
For more Information on how to support our cause and learn more about our the NESS Sensory Boxes, visit NESS Cares, Inc. website at www.nesscares.org