St. Johns University Students Walk to Benefit Services provided by DDI for Children & Adults with Autism and other Developmental Disabilities
(Smithtown, NY) — Developmental Disabilities Institute (DDI), the leading service provider for children and adults with Autism on Long Island, will be the recipient of a very special fundraising effort by two St. John’s University seniors, an effort that will also serve to bring about more awareness of Autism and other developmental disabilities. Nathan Holmes and John Kenny will hit the pavement on May 28th at the Brooklyn Bridge and will finish up their walking journey across Long Island on June 4th at Montauk Point.
Pictured (L-R) are St. Johns University walkers John Kenny, Morgan Zajkowski, Marita Rausch, Nathan Holmes, Liam Kenny, and Michael Sardone.
“These students have decided to celebrate the milestone of their own graduation by taking on a journey to better the lives of others. It’s really wonderful to see the dedication and generosity that Nathan and John have shown. We are truly honored that John and Nathan have chosen to support DDI, and to also bring about greater awareness of disability,” stated John Lessard, Executive Director of DDI.
The 128-mile walk will take the students eight days to complete, averaging 17.5 miles per day. Stops along the way will include multiple DDI sites as well as St. John’s University. Along with fellow classmates from St. John’s, students will be staying with DDI host families throughout their journey. Joining Nathan and John on the journey are Morgan Zajkowski, Marita Rausch, Liam Kenny, and Michael Sardone.
“This walk captures the spirit of my fellow classmates of giving back,” stated John Kenny. “We have gained an increased appreciation for the ways in which we can improve the lives of those around us. With that in mind, we decided we would like to do one final project to commemorate our time at St. John’s and start our transition to serving the community post graduation.”
Funds raised will go towards DDI’s Little Plains School and Children’s Residential Project. This ambitious project not only includes a new home and added classroom capacity at the school for 24 children with Autism, but includes sorely needed renovations to the school building, which is over 50 years old. New handicap accessibility, an HVAC system upgrade, roof replacement, lighting upgrades and various other improvements to increase the energy-efficiency of the school building will be included in the work.
“We could not have found a better organization to support than DDI,” commented Nathan Holmes. “Through financial assistance we hope to support the valuable projects DDI implements and the services it offers to the many children and adults across Nassau and Suffolk Counties.”
DDI is a not-for-profit agency headquartered in Smithtown, NY, with more than 40 locations throughout Suffolk and Nassau Counties. DDI is the largest provider of services for individuals with Autism on Long Island. It provides special educational, vocational, day and residential programs, as well as healthcare services for over 5,000 children and adults with autism or other developmental disabilities. DDI also operates family-centered preschool programs for both children with disabilities as well as typically developing students. DDI was founded in 1961 by a group of parents to address the special educational and therapeutic needs of their children with autism or other developmental disabilities. DDI is a member agency of the United Way of Long Island.
For more information about DDI, visit www.ddiny.org.
