By Lauri Lee
Northside News
Keep Calm Sensory Zone, a new inclusive environment for families with neurodiverse children or young adults, is opening soon at 1736 Roth Street, in the NorthGate Shopping Center. The grand opening will be held Saturday, April 15, 10 am–6 pm and Sunday, April 16 11 am– 4 pm to introduce the new 11,000 square-foot facility where neurodiverse children and their families can play and relax while receiving holistic care. Although you don’t have to have a diagnosis to enjoy the facility and no one is going to ask.
This is a family-owned and operated business by Courtney Willegal and her son Sean, age 12, who has multiple diagnoses is her not-so-silent partner. She discusses decisions with him and is teaching him to be an entrepreneur. He calls himself the “boss” of the company.
Willegal saw the need for her own family and how there was very little support and resources for parents and decided to change it. “We wanted a place where families could come where they felt welcome and that this was a home away from home for them,” said Willegal. “This innovative family activity center is geared toward families with children or young adults impacted by mental health challenges or disability. Those with intellectual, cognitive or developmental delays, autism, anxiety, depression, or Down Syndrome can find support, resources and connections during their visit.” The Keep Calm Sensory Zone is like the center of the spider web for making connections when a family gets a diagnosis or faces a new challenge. They now have a starting point and know where to begin. All staff has experience with someone with a diagnosis, whether it is personally or their children.
The entire family unit is impacted when one or more individuals are neurodiverse. When day-to-day life becomes consumed by treatments and finding resources, the experience can be quite isolating and exhausting. While the rest of the family is interacting in the large sensory gym by swinging, sliding and climbing to their to their hearts content to work on sensory input and output, there’s an adult zen zone for parents to relax and connect with other parents. Teen time and sibling programs are also available.
Some of the amenities available at the facility include:
Sensory reduced room with a darker, calmer quieter environment to go into regulate emotions and calm down activity.
Hammock swing
Touch wall panel area
Toddler gym
Activity walls
A party and events room that families or community organizations can rent
Family events, i.e., movie nights, magic shows, and art time
Outside play area for warm weather activities.
Open to families no matter the ability of the child.
The Keep Calm Tool Kits retail space offers fidgets and sensory tools to calm down and self regulate. Willegal had developed a keep calm tool kit for son filled with fidgets and calming toys. The problem was that all the kids wanted to use his fidgets and he didn’t have them when he needed them. He wanted them to have their own and asked his mom to help.
Fidgets help those who can’t quite sit still, cope with their emotions, or calm down when overwhelmed/stressed. They get fidgety and get into everything and become anxious, moody, angry, temperamental, tearful, forgetful, restless and hyperactive. The tools in the kit up help them to self-regulate, cope and adapt when needed.
The Keep Calm Sensory Zone and Keep Calm Tool Kit retail space are valuable community assets. Be sure to check out them out.