Caroline Long, Executive Director shares “First Words of Hope is our annual fundraising luncheon that serves as the largest source of unrestricted funds.” Proceeds from this fundraising event help meet the needs of many WNC families with children on the autism spectrum. As high as 85% of participants at St Gerard House receive some form of subsidized care to make services accessible. Community financial support allows St. Gerard House to continue this practice.
St. Gerard House’s mission is to help individuals with autism and their families experience more joy and achieve meaningful life outcomes. All St. Gerard House programs are based in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) techniques that apply familiar concepts, such as reinforcement, prompting and generalizing, in systematic ways to teach skills and to replace problem behaviors with more functional ones.
WNC Bridge Foundation makes grants to empower local nonprofits in the area of elder care, wellness support, and youth development. The foundation serves the most vulnerable of our neighbors and eliminates barriers that prevent individuals from reaching their full potential. Their mission is to serve as a catalyst for change in our community and create a better Western North Carolina for all.