Angad was diagnosed with severe autism at the age of 3 yrs. Angad has been a student at the Open Door School for several years, till he graduated in 2013. His childhood years, and more so his adolescence have been a roller coaster ride for all of us.
Since 2013, Angad has been interning at the Aadhaar Vocational Centre (AVC). After an initial period of getting used to the structure and his colleagues at AVC, Angad has come a long way in the past year. He is much more independent, can transition between different activities and work areas independently, with ease and comfort and can complete most of his self-care routines without any supervision. One of the fabulous outcomes of this independence was that, a few months back, Angad was able to participate in a three day camp with his supervisors and colleagues from the AVC. A first time for Angad!
Another major achievement for Angad has been his ability to deal with his anxiety on his own in a more socially appropriate way. Of late, when something bothers him, he tries to cope with the same on his own, using some of the strategies that he has been learning at the AVC. Working at the AVC has brought about a lot of change in Angad and he definitely seems to be more settled and a happier young man.
Vivek Baba is a 35-year-old adult with autism diagnosed at the age of about 5. He has undergone behaviour modification therapy and also some pre-vocational and vocational training. Vivek was coached by different private volunteers and at home. He joined Air Force Golden Jubilee Institute (Special Wing), Subrato Park, New Delhi, where he received structured training and pre-vocational training. He continued there for over 12 years. For a period after this, there was hiatus in the services received by Vivek, when the family moved to the US and his mother developed health issues and finally passed away.
Vivek joined theAadhar Vocational Center (AVC) in 2005. Since then there has been significant improvement in his behaviour and general attitude. His ability to follow verbal instructions has improved a lot, as has his attention span. The best part is thatVivek has become much more independent than he was earlier. He looks forward to coming to AVC and doing productive tasks in which he has been trained by the staff.
The Coordinator of the AVC Aadhar and her team are extremely dedicated and committed to their work, something that is evidenced in the general improvement of all the interns at the AVC. I gratefully acknowledge the efforts of the staff of AVC, Action For Autism which has brought about this transformation in Vivek in the last 9 years.
Our daughter Ripal became part of the Aadhaar Vocational Centre (AVC) in July 2013 after graduating from the Open Door Day Programme. In the context of the same, we would like to share our experiences and feelings.
Ripal's entry into the AVC was full of excitement, joy and an event to enjoy. An important theme of life- "A person after schooling does some work to earn money to lead their life" has been executed in a very simple manner at AVC. Ripal was very excited when she got her first stipend. I will never forget moment when I came back from my office and Ripal handed over the envelope containing her first stipend to me, just like any other youngster giving her 'PahaliKamai' in her father's hand. Her first stipend went toward the 'Chhatt Puja', making this an even more auspicious occasion for us. In a nut shell, we can say that we found a ray of hope in which, my child would be able to earn something under guidance of AVC and would be able to contribute productively towards society. We also feel that the exposure at the AVC will help in identifying the different kinds of jobs that Ripal may be inclined towards and be better in. Also the outings at the AVC like going for movies, day trips, eateries have helped a lot in developing her confidence, excitement, and independence
We want to thank all the members of the AVC team who put in their untiring efforts to establish this mile stone in the field. We salute all for their contribution.