Local T-shirt Fundraiser Benefits Up To 3

The CPD’s Up to 3 is getting a surprise boost this month, as a family that received services years ago launched a T-shirt fundraiser for the program.

Lisa Hall said her 16-year-old Autistic son, Bradlee, gained a lot of benefits from Up to 3, which he entered when he was just two years old. “At that time he couldn’t communicate,” she said. Up to 3 used a picture system to help him with communication. Staff also helped him to learn to play with typically developing children.

“There are a lot of things they taught me to do at home that I just never knew an Autistic child struggled with,” she said. “I still contact [Up to 3 Education Specialist] Janel and say, ‘Hey, what do you think of this, what do you think of that.’

“We want to give back because Autism is especially dear to my heart.”

Up to 3’s Janel Preston said the fundraiser was a happy surprise. “I’m glad we helped them get to the road that they’re on,” she said.

Hall co-owns a T shirt company, Black Stitch Apparel, and Bradlee works there now. The company launched a fund-raiser to benefit Up to 3 for Autism Acceptance Month, and its owners reached out to Courtney, a young Autistic woman, to design one of the autism-themed shirts.

“I have autism,” Courtney says on the fundraising page. “Having autism sometimes makes things frustrating to me, but it is a huge blessing for me. I stress out a lot but at the same time I know a lot of things, and I know how to take care of myself. I am happy I have autism. It helps me stand out.”

You can find out more about the fundraiser on the Black Stitch Apparel Facebook Page.