When we’re not building great solutions to help clients grow their businesses, many of us here at Soliant are passionate about making the world a better place. Our philanthropic efforts take many different forms—from scholarships to international pro bono projects—but we are always especially excited to be able to make a difference in the communities where we live and work. So when Devereux (a local nonprofit behavioral health organization) invited us to participate in a community service project called Reading Week, we jumped at the chance.
We are always especially excited to be able to make a difference in the communities where we live and work.
Devereux Advanced Behavior Health, which was founded in 1912, operates a comprehensive national network of clinical, therapeutic, educational, and employment programs and services that positively impact the lives of tens of thousands of individuals and families every year. The organization works with a wide range of people, from those with emotional and behavioral health challenges to those with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
Those of us who work in the Philadelphia office know Devereux well. They have a facility down the street from our office and we’ve supported the organization in the past through financial donations and by buying flowers from their shop that employs some of their clients.
During Reading Week, Devereux invites individuals from the external community to read stories to autistic youth. This year the event was held during Autism Awareness Month, in order to help “promote autism awareness, inclusion, and self-determination for all.” Four Soliant employees—Craig Stabler, Kim Lundgren, David Hillis, and Taylor Kingsbury—joined dozens of other volunteers at Devereux CIDDS, helping to contribute to a successful day.
“Despite the challenges they face, the children and adolescents at our schools truly appreciate good books and great stories. The children were excited and inquisitive, your books sparked their interest and led to many interesting, in-depth conversations.”
Soliant team members read classics such as Ferdinand the Bull, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, and Goodnight Moon.
The kids enjoyed the stories, but we got even more out of the experience. Reading to the students at Devereux CIDDS gave us a better sense of how Devereux helps these kids and helped us to gain awareness of those with autism spectrum disorder. It was also a pleasure to know that we were helping in a small way. I’m sure we’ll participate in Reading Week again next year and we will continue to look for ways to support this wonderful organization.
