Center for ASD

🐾🪙 Coins for Critters has officially started for our REACH and XCEL classrooms! 🪙🐾

Each class is going head-to-head in a friendly competition to help support their classroom pets! 🦎🐹

From Monday, October 5th through Monday, October 19th, classrooms will collect coins, and all proceeds will go toward pet food and bedding for their class critters. 💚

And there’s a little extra motivation… 👀🍦
The class that raises the most will win an ice cream party! 🎉

Let the coin collecting begin! 🪙🐾

What a fun night supporting Children’s Advocacy Center at their Bingo, Badges & Bags event last night! 🎉🏆 Our team showed up for a great cause, played some bingo, and enjoyed a night of connection with our community.

A huge thank you to Maribel with WoodmenLife for sponsoring our table — your generosity made the night even sweeter! 💙

Grateful for organizations like Children's Advocacy JCTX and the work they do for kids in our community.
Thank you for having us! 🙌

Monday, Katie M Palmer shared a wonderful and informative presentation on digestion and ways to support our children, with plenty of helpful information for us as parents too. Katie is truly a wealth of holistic knowledge, and we’re so appreciative of her taking the time to share it, answer questions, and give our parents new things to think about and explore. Thank you, Katie, for spending the evening with us! And a big thank you to Jason's Deli Burleson for fueling us that night. 🥗

Friday night was all about trivia! We spent the evening laughing, testing our random knowledge, connecting with each other, snacking on nachos, and sipping on Raising Cane’s sweet tea. Thank you to Raising Cane's Burleson for donating the tea, and to the Levenhagen family for bringing the chips, salsa, queso, and guacamole! 🧀

And our trivia crown goes to Valerie S. — she finished the night with 2,818 points and officially claimed the Parent THRIVE trivia bragging rights... at least until next time! 😂🏆

Good food, helpful information, and time spent connecting with other parents — that’s what Parent THRIVE is all about. Thank you to everyone who joined us! 💙

Meet Karsyn! 💛

Karsyn is one of our participants in the First Steps program, and we asked her mom how the Center has impacted their family. Here’s what she would like to share:

Karsyn is full of personality and imagination! She loves Mario Bros, dancing, dressing up, and pretty much anything that lets her imagination run wild. And if you ask her, she’s been ready to go trick-or-treating since the end of May!

Karsyn attending the Center for ASD has been such a wonderful experience for her. It has helped her grow socially, build confidence, and feel more comfortable engaging and connecting with other kids.

The Center for ASD has been a true blessing to our family. The resources, support, and knowledge we’ve gained since becoming part of this community have changed our lives in the most positive ways. Watching her grow, become more confident, and find her little community has been so special to us.

One of the things we love most is having a place where both kids and parents can find a community that truly understands and “just gets it.”

Mom would also like to share about the community her family has found at the Center.

Many of the parents we’ve met there have become like family to us. It’s a place where we can unapologetically share our thoughts, feelings, and experiences about the day-to-day challenges of raising our kiddos. We talk about struggles that many parents may never have to think about, but we also celebrate the victories that others might consider small. For us, every single win is huge.

We share so much with one another, but our personal favorite has to be the stories and laughter that fill the room. There’s something incredibly special about being surrounded by people who truly understand, who celebrate the wins with you, and who can laugh with you through the hard days. We are so grateful to have found a community that makes us feel understood, supported, and never alone. - The Rowans

💛 Thank you to the Rowan family for sharing Karsyn’s story with us. We’re so grateful to be part of their family’s journey and to support Karsyn as she grows, connects, and finds her little community.

🎃👻 October 2026 CASD Events 🧩📅
Get ready for a spook-tacular month at the Center for ASD! 🍂✨ Check out what’s ahead, from connection and learning to community fun! 🧡

✨ Save the Dates ✨
📅 October 1st-November30th: BWW Teams Up for Kids
1️⃣ October 5th: PCA | Check CASD Parents: Join the Chat for more details.
2️⃣ October 5th-19th: Coins for Critters (Xcel & Reach Class Competition)
3️⃣ October 5th: First Steps Thrive
4️⃣ October 9th: Adult Thrive
5️⃣ October 13th: PTO Meeting for Xcel & Reach (Check your class calendar for more details.)
6️⃣ October 16th: Pr***en & Teen Thrive
7️⃣ October 16th: Friday Parent Thrive
8️⃣ October 17th: Burnout Conference for Caregivers of Special Needs
9️⃣ October 19th: First Steps Thrive
🔟October 19th: Monday Parent Thrive
1️⃣1️⃣ October 20th: Start of the Six Week Session: On the Go (OTG)
1️⃣2️⃣ October 21st: Coffee For A Cause
1️⃣3️⃣ October 23rd: Fall Family Thrive
1️⃣4️⃣ October 24th: We will be a vendor at Church360’s Community Day
1️⃣5️⃣ October 26th-30th: Xcel & Reach’s Spirit Week
📅 Be sure to check out our Volunteer Needs for the month of October!

✨ Get Involved ✨
🤝 Volunteer Opportunities → [email protected]
🎁 Interested in sponsoring or hosting a fundraiser? → [email protected]
📧 Program Enrollment & Questions → [email protected]
📌 If you are new and are interested in any of our programs, please complete the form: centerforasd.org/contact-us and fill out "Get Started"

🔔 Stay Informed!
Join our CASD Programs: Stay Informed group! It is designed to streamline communication and make it easier to keep up with everything. You’ll receive updates on when to RSVP for our programs, upcoming events, community happenings, and urgent needs within CASD.

💙 We can’t wait to see you—for a tour, an event, or just to say hi!

CALLING ALL LOCAL BUSINESSES!
📣 We’re looking for Family Thrive vendors who want to connect with the families we serve.

This is your chance to introduce your business, organization, or service to our community, meet families face-to-face, and explore how you can become a resource for those we support. It’s a meaningful way to make an impact while growing your own reach.

Interested in becoming a Family Thrive vendor? Reach out to Ms. Denise at [email protected] to learn more. We’d love to have you! 💙