Creating a special place in East Meadow
Organization to open center for local special needs children
Michelle Soodek was featured in the Herald several years ago when she led the formation of a Girl Scout troop for children with special needs.
The troop grew, and so did the girls. Her daughter Shelby, now 15 and a student in W.T. Clarke High School’s REACH program, wants to try out new things. She likes fashion, but also may want to give dancing or singing a shot.
Unfortunately, as Soodek explained, it’s difficult for Shelby and other children with special needs to participate in the same after-school programs that mainstream students partake in.
“As they get older, the opportunities go down,” said Soodek, an East Meadow resident. “It’s like a funnel. While they are getting trained in school for vocational tracks, they are still missing their teenage lives.”
Soodek’s goal since developing the concept of My Special Place, a non-profit incorporated in 2008, is to create a hub where special needs students can learn and play beyond the typical school hours. The mission is to bring joy and happiness to the lives of teenagers with developmental disabilities.
“It’s their special place, where they go and they are special,” Soodek said. “Where it doesn’t matter because it’s your special place.”
The Town of Hempstead’s popular Camp Anchor offer an extensive program for special needs kids; it operates throughout the summer and on weekends during the school year. Though Soodek said that Shelby attends and enjoys Camp Anchor, My Special Place would offer kids and teens somewhere to go on the other days, specifically after school.
My Special Place’s recreation center will run after-school activities such as dance club, drama club, fitness club, art club, and host a youth lounge. Ideally, Soodek explained, the center would be in East Meadow — centrally located to draw participants from areas like Levittown, Hicksville, Bellmore, Merrick and Wantagh.
Another important piece to the puzzle are teen volunteers. These teens will be an integral part of the center, as they are to serve as peer models and friends to the participants.
