We had blast at our annual summer socialization event on July 13th. We loved seeing new and returning families enjoying the festivities. Summer Splash was packed full of fun activities like face painting, a music station, a photo booth, and of course water games. As always, a big thank you to all of the excellent volunteers that helped pull the event together. And a shout out to the Temple University students for their creativity and compassion in designing the activities. We’re counting down the days until our next socialization event on November 2nd,2019. Save the date for our Autumn Festival!
Heather Carlino has been recognized as a 2019 Healthcare Hero by Mainline Today. “By day, Heather Carlino is a clinical lecturer at Penn’s pediatric acute care nurse practitioner program. Her other passion is Spring Brook Farm, a West Chester-based nonprofit that provides animal therapy and other activities for kids ages 6-12 with autism, cerebral palsy, Down Syndrome and other special needs. Read the article here.
Thank you to the First Crew team who selflessly gave up their Saturday on June 8 to make improvements to The Barn’s exteriors. Just in time for the start of Camp Geronimo, First Crew installed new handrails along the ramps leading to the Tree House and the barn and put new tops and seats on picnic tables.
Our dear Miss Piggy was recently featured in an interview with abc’s The View co-host, Sara Haines. Please check out her performance! It was such an honor for The Barn to be showcased this way.
The Barn at Spring Brook Farm’s Board President and cherished friend, Susan Elko, was honored on May 4th with the Chester County Fund for Women and Girls’ Kitchen Table Award.
CCFWG established the Kitchen Table Award in 2011 to honor a Chester County woman who has made substantive contributions through service and/or philanthropy to improve the lives of women and girls through her own time, talent or resources. It is named in celebration of the genesis of CCFWG in 1996: many conversations held around kitchen, board and coffee tables.
Susan Elko has an impressive history of service and philanthropy in Chester County. With over 30 years of experience in special education, educational consulting and policy development, she has devoted her career to serving others. From her work assisting women faced with homelessness to her role as Board President of The Barn at Spring Brook Farm, a nonprofit focused on enriching the lives of children with disabilities through animal-assisted activities – Susan has developed strong programming and opportunities for women and girls throughout Chester County. As a former board member and co-founder of CCFWG’s Girls Advisory Board (GAB), she has helped grow the program over the past 13 years into the transformative experience it is for high school girls today. Susan currently serves on the board of the Community Coalition, and was a former committee member of the First Presbyterian Church of West Chester and WCU’s Institute for Educational Excellence and Entrepreneurship. She also formerly served as an executive committee member for the Homeless Single Women’s Shelter Task Force, where she was instrumental in establishing a winter emergency shelter. Furthermore, Susan is an inspiring mentor, friend, colleague and true example of how women help shape the future of their communities.
To read the Daily Local News article, please click here.
Make sure you check out Emily McClure, our Executive Director, and Dr. Page Buck from West Chester University as they share the work of The Barn on PHL17’s April 21st edition of IN FOCUS: Autism Awareness.
The Eagles organization is in the spotlight for their Eagles Autism Challenge taking place on Saturday, May 19th at Lincoln Financial Field. Ryan Hammond, the program’s executive director talks about the large fundraising event which is expected to attract thousands of people who can run or cycle to raise money for innovative research on this disorder that affects 1 in 68 people. And, according to experts it is one of the fastest growing disorders in the country. Arianna Esposito, a behavior analyst from the Kinney Center for Autism Education and Support – lends her expertise to the topic. And, the Nolte Family is with us. Tom Nolte and his two sons Erik and Luke talk about their experiences with two of their sons who are triplets affected by autism. Their team – which Erik and Luke named – “Team 1 in 68” is fundraising for the Eagles Autism Challenge in May. And, Emily McClure, executive director of The Barn at Spring Brook Farm in West Chester talks about the farm as a healing alternative for people of various abilities. She is joined by Dr. Page Buck of West Chester University who explains the results of research on the bond between humans and animals and how it is helping people including those affected by autism. In Focus airs Saturday mornings at 6:30 on PHL17.
New research is finding animals may help kids on the autism spectrum relate to other people
Sabrina Opstbaum wasn’t expecting miracles when she started taking her daughter Reegan to the Barn at Spring Brook Farm, an animal-assisted intervention program for special needs children in West Chester. Like many kids on the autism spectrum, Reegan didn’t seem to connect with people, but she always enjoyed the company of animals. Read More…
At The Barn, farm animals give kids with disabilities a boost
October 21, 2016 — Mary Clayton watched her daughter, Alannah, 10, stride confidently through the Barn at Spring Brook Farm and head to the pasture to walk her favorite miniature horse, Dreamer, while telling the filly about the week that had passed since her last visit. Read More…
POCOPSON >> Two years ago, the Barn at Spring Brook Farm, a facility that provides animal-assisted activities for children with disabilities, was all set to close. Codes officers found violations at the facility that would cost upward of $100,000 after a neighbor complained of noise… Read more here!
