There are many resources for families of children/adults with disabilities in our area. Please see the list below of the many opportunities our community offers our families. Click on the name of the organization to be directed to their websites for more information.
GET YOUR KIDS INVOLVED!!!! Many of these opportunities are FREE. Please reach out to SEPAC if you have any questions. Also, if you have any resources that you would like to be added to this list, please feel free to share with SEPAC!
Abilities Movement (AM), formerly known as Adapted Recreation Services, is a not-for-profit organization that provides fitness, wellness, sports opportunities, and community integration for people of all abilities through ourcomprehensive classes in fitness and sports. Abilities Movement's focus is to develop a comprehensive plan that emphasizes the goals of each individual and their families.
Artists Unlimited | Voices Unlimited
Since 2007, their mission has been to offer a unique expressive experience, in a safe haven, to those individuals who may not otherwise have an opportunity to participate as actors in other venues. Performing quality works with the message of inclusion and respect, Artists Unlimited’s program seeks to break down barriers and stereotypes often attributed to those who are disabled. By integrating their cast, individuals with and without disabilities often learn life skills from each other that go beyond the theater venue.
AutismUp is the leading 501(c)3 autism support organization in the Greater Rochester and surrounding areas. Founded in 2004, by a small group of parents of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder, AutismUp has grown to include more than 2,500 family and professional member households.
Ashford Dance Company was founded in 2009 by director Caitlyn Redmond-Culotta. In the very beginning, class offerings consisted of one tots class containing 12 students. Since then, the studio has grown and changed while still holding strong to the founding principle that dancing should be fun.
Best Buddies is the world’s largest organization dedicated to ending the social, physical and economic isolation of the 200 million people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Our programs empower the special abilities of people with IDD by helping them form meaningful friendships with their peers, secure successful jobs, live independently, improve public speaking, self-advocacy and communication skills, and feel valued by society.
CDS Monarch’s Recreation Programs offer person-centered recreation and leisure activities to individuals ages five through adulthood living at home with their families through various community-based programs to meet individual needs. CDS Monarch’s specialized recreation services provide integrated settings for all individuals.
Challenger Baseball is an official division of Little League International. The division was created in 1989 with the objective to give kids with physical and developmental challenges the opportunity to play the great game of baseball. Players are ages 4 -18, and up to 22 if they are enrolled in a school program. Locally they have over 300 players in Little League town programs; Brighton, Webster, Penfield, Fairport, Pittsford, Victor, Rush Henrietta, Honeoye Falls, and Greece. You do not have to live on one of the towns just mentioned for your child to play there. They find the town program that fits best for you.
Challenger Miracle Field of Greater Rochester provides people with developmental, physical or intellectual disabilities a barrier-free, safe, accessible place to experience the health benefits and joy of play through baseball, other team sports, and adaptive recreational equipment.
Community Place - Disability Services
The Community Place of Greater Rochester, Inc.(CPGR) is a nonprofit agency founded on the belief that everyone should enjoy the same health, economic, and social opportunities no matter who they are or where they live. Born from the merger of the Lewis Street Center, Genesee Settlement House and Eastside Community Center; The Community Place serves residents of Northeast Rochester. We deliver a wide range of social, developmental, and educational programs delivered through our facilities in the northeast sector of the city of Rochester (NY) and throughout the greater Rochester area. We are a leading neighborhood-based community center, providing a foundation for growth, empowerment and stability for those we serve. The Community Place is proud to continue the legacy built by its former organizations and continue the settlement house movement in Rochester. We invite you to learn more about the programs and services we provide to the people of Rochester—from children and teenagers to families and seniors to individuals with developmentally disabilities.
The Community Recreation Program provides opportunities to develop lifetime recreation skills and interests. Most of their programs and events are out in the community. They offer opportunities for individual and group interaction, as well as programs that incorporate instruction and skill development, such as their individual swimming lessons, teen club, fitness and fine arts programs.
At David’s Refuge, we are devoted to serving families who care for some of the most vulnerable members of our communities. We want caregivers to know they are not alone, what they do matters, and God and this community loves them. We stand by our values of respect, relationships, compassion, empowerment and excellence. We will answer the call to condemn racism, oppression and discrimination in all forms in the strongest possible terms. Our staff and Board of Directors will seek opportunities to learn and grow. We have identified specific actions to improve our inclusivity and support to caregivers. At David’s Refuge, we are committed to creating a place that is inclusive, loving, and safe for all members of our community. We celebrate our differences and we are proud to use our platform to support needed change in our community and our country. We recognize that all of us can, and must, do more. Our mission is to provide respite, resources and support to parents and guardians of children with special needs or life threatening medical conditions where they will be refreshed, restored and renewed in their role as caregivers.
Equicenter offers a number of therapeutic riding, hippotherapy, vaulting and horsemanship (equine facilitated mental health) sessions. Their goal is to provide a safe, appropriate, productive and enjoyable environment where participants can work toward their individual goals.
The Family Autism Center's mission is to provide traditional family experiences for all families in Rochester, NY and all surrounding areas. They are an inclusive organization, and serve families dealing with Autism Spectrum Disorder and other developmental delays as well as families without disabilities. They provide skill-building opportunities to families and children that promote independence, healthy active lifestyles, networking and greater opportunities for families to participate in their community.
Flower City Down Syndrome Network
Flower City Down Syndrome Network is a not-for-profit corporation under New York State laws. We are a 501(c)(3) organization and your donation is tax deductible. Our mission is to provide education, support, and opportunities to people with Down syndrome and their families. We operate in the Greater Rochester area and are a network of families, professionals, self-advocates, and friends who all share in the joys and challenges of a Down syndrome diagnosis.
We know that people with Down syndrome have valuable contributions to make to their communities and we work to ensure that their full potential is met and that they are included in every aspect of their communities. We know firsthand what you are experiencing and we are here to answer any and all questions about Down syndrome.
A group of dedicated individuals who have been touched by Down syndrome have been working hard to bring GiGi’s Playhouse to our own backyard. At GiGi’s Playhouse, all ages are welcome, from pre-natal to adults. The positive and uplifting environment of GiGi’s Playhouse Rochester will empower those with Down syndrome and their families to reach their highest potential.
The Gliding Stars organization provides individuals with disabilities the opportunity to increase their personal potential through development of ice skating skills in a regular program of instruction and practice in their own local community, culminating in the demonstration of those skills publicly in an end-of-season on-ice choreographed performance.
Heritage Christian Stables is a therapeutic riding program for children and adults, accredited by NARHA (North American Riding for the Handicapped, Inc.). With the assistance of highly skilled riding instructors, physical therapists, and hundreds of dedicated volunteers, this program provides an exciting opportunity for physical, mental, emotional and spiritual growth.
Kids Thrive 585 - Special Needs Family Support
Kids Thrive 585 offers listings of health, family and child resources at your fingertips.
Music Education Centers offers a variety of musical enrichment programs. MEC has developed educational systems that break musical tasks down to their very core to ensure success for every student. These programs are particularly appropriate for students with Autism Spectrum Disorder, Down Syndrome or other Developmental or Learning Disabilities.
For families whose children have been diagnosed with cancer, long term illness, autism, mental or physical disability, or who may be suffering from other life challenges, trauma or setbacks, they seek to provide recreational assisted horseback riding and fun, horse oriented activities intended to lift children’s spirits, encourage personal healing and enhance self-empowerment.
The Pieters Family Life Center is a premier program of Heritage Christian Services, a thriving human services agency that partners with thousands of people throughout Rochester and Buffalo to ensure that everyone – including children and people with intellectual and developmental disabilities – feels valued and respected. A listing of classes is published quarterly.
Rochester Kids Out and About - Special Needs Resources in and Around Rochester
Rochester's online guide to everything for kids, teens and families.
Rochester Special Hockey - The Ice Cats
Rochester Special Hockey, is a member of the American Special Hockey Association (ASHA); their organization specializes in providing training in the game of ice hockey for individuals with developmental disabilities. The Rochester Ice Cats / Rochester Special Hockey is an organization which is comprised of players both male and female who range in age from 4 years old to 40 years young. Their team is geared to individual needs with an emphasis on sportsmanship and learning to interact with others.
Shared Ski Adventures, CP Rochester
Shared Ski Adventures is an Adaptive Learn-to-Ski Program that helps people with disabilities become independent skiers. Skiing takes place at Swain Ski Resort in Western New York. Shared Ski Adventures is the largest adaptive ski program in the greater Rochester area.
Competitive sports breed common ground. Athletes, coaches and the people who support them come together for the love of a sport or the thrill of a game. Not everyone wins. Through Special Olympics New York, though, everyone is included. Athletes with intellectual disabilities have the opportunity to challenge themselves in fair and even competition. Win or lose, they develop their own character, make friends and find unknown wells of determination within themselves.
They are in business because they care about people. From their humble beginnings to their commercial grade-bakery operation you see today, every decision they’ve made has been for the good of their bakers. At Special Touch Bakery they believe the world truly is a greater place when you celebrate everyone’s abilities. By working with them you are furthering their mission and providing support to people of all abilities.
Spectrum offers a unique variety of creative arts programming, including individual music, art, dance, and theatre lessons, group classes, and seasonal camps, in addition to individual and group music and art therapy services. Spectrum’s presence extends to the Rochester community and surrounding areas, providing services in early intervention programs, school districts, community centers, senior living facilities, day care centers, rehabilitation clinics, and group homes.
Partners with people who have disabilities, their families, and others who support them, to realize fulfilling possibilities in education, employment, and healthy living; and to transform communities to include everyone. Starbridge is a part of the New York State Parent Network, a collaboration between all federally-funded Parent Centers in the state.
Strike Back Martial Arts provides training programs tailored for students, regardless of their age, sex, size and skill, which will meet their needs for functional self-protection. Through this program, students will learn discipline, develop strength and gain self-confidence. Programs include Jujitsu Buddies (ages 4-11), No Gi Jujitsu (tweens and teens), and Core 4 Fitness (older teens and young adults).
Rochester Rotary Sunshine Campus is a fully accessible residential summer camp that has met the needs of children with paralysis and other physical challenges and their families since 1922. Each summer, more than 2,500 children and young-adult campers (ages 7 to 21 years old) with disabilities take advantage of this 157-acre campground in Rush, NY It is the only camp facility of its kind in Greater Rochester that gives children with special needs unique overnight camping experiences.
Together Including Every Student (TIES)
Promotes the participation of students with developmental disabilities in extracurricular and community activities by creating effective, natural support provided by trained student volunteers. Supported by various school districts – please visit the TIES website to find the coordinator responsible for your district.
STATE RESOURCES
Assisting individuals with disabilities to achieve and maintain employment and to support independent living.
NYS Office of Children and Families