11/23/2017
As I think and reflect upon this Thanksgiving Day, I wanted to take some time to give thanks to my AEES family that means so much to me.
When I first joined AEES in its infancy, I had a goal: to provide the best ABA services possible to the autism community by improving and CHANGING how ABA early intervention services were delivered. Having serviced the autism community for over 23 years, I have been lucky and honored to work with individuals diagnosed with autism across the ages; from early intervention, preschool, school aged and adults. To witness what these individuals go through in their lifetime, how services were delivered and how crucial it was for services to be quality right from the start became a huge factor in what I wanted for AEES. It is with our AEES staff, BCBAs and providers, that I am seeing the realization of this goal.
I want to specifically thank my staff in each of our departments (HR, Staffing and Outreach, Evaluations, Billing, Case Management, Clinical and Administrative Assistants) for their hard work, their teamwork and commitment and dedication to what we do. Each year we go through so many trials and tribulations and we make it through together and we make it through stronger. I am so grateful that each and every one of them wants the best for the children we serve and it is a part of every decision they make. Thank you for our small get-togethers, our office game nights, our book clubs, our shared love of food, our office chat channel when we stop on occasion to share memes and funny gifs, our disagreements and our agreements….I couldn’t ask for better staff in each and every one of you.
Thank you to my BCBAs and clinical team who understand and push for quality ABA for every child we service. You are a hard working clinical team that get along together and are on top of what we do. Between the shared emails of new features on Catalyst to swapping clinical ideas, I am so grateful for your knowledge, expertise and experience.
Thank you to our AEES providers because without you, AEES would not be possible. Having provided EI services myself, many years ago, I know the challenges you face like putting together and carrying a suitcase of educational toys and materials, audits, filling out session notes and progress reports, as well as the joys and rewards of seeing your child mand for the first time, imitate an action, attend to a story, tact their mom or dad… I know how hard it is for those who use this as their primary source of income and those who work a full time job and work with us as an additional source of income. It is hard! But your dedication and commitment to working with our kids is worth it! Thank you and I am grateful for you.
Finally, thank you to our families – for allowing us in your homes to provide the best services we can to your child. It is because of you, that we do what we do.
Happy Thanksgiving! May it be filled with joy, love and thanks.
Mariann Lai, M.S.Ed, S.A.S., BCBA, LBA
Executive Director
