Our Story!

Our names are John and Penelope. We have three children and our youngest boy, whose name is Vasillis, is on the autism spectrum. When our little prince was diagnosed with autism 8 years ago, we experienced a «heavy loss» that led us through difficult mental and psychological paths. 

Everything changed and our everyday life became merciless, tough and unprecedented. Our relationship as a couple, the relationship with our children, with relatives and friends, acquaintances, our neighborhood ... everything had to be rebuilt from the beginning, upon a new basis, and new facts of life.

At the beginning we received help from Mrs. Athena, a clinical psychologist who supports us to this day and in our efforts to build Avali. She helped us manage our emotions. It took us a long time to take the step of coming to terms with our new life and getting to where we are today.

We're so happy we have Vassili with us today. He is the positive motivation for the whole family, the connecting link and an example of strength for us to progress in life. He has accomplished so much, tried and learned a lot and along with him, we have learned even more. We have redefined the meaning of love and we become better people ourselves.

Of course, nothing was easy. Everything was done through perseverance, personal investigation, constant training, a lot of effort and optimism.

It was a big fight, physical and psychological that usually leads families like ours towards isolation. This happens because a simple visit to friends or relatives in a playground, at a restaurant or café, can prove a completely different experience for the whole family.

But now we can be well, optimistic and happy. We now know that only happy parents can make happy children.

This knowledge, this whole experience which we have learned as parents, all this need that we know that there is for joy, relaxation, understanding, solidarity and acceptance is what we want to share with other families who have children on the autism spectrum.

That is why we want to create the Avali.   

The Avali!

Avali means a small, protected and sheltered harbor. And we want our “Avali” to be that for everyone who comes. A secure place of joy for you and your children. A place that our children will have a good time and will leave happy, and at the same time, a place where parents will be able to be together or to relax alone, listen to music, have a coffee, talk with others, play and from the most vapid thing to something of the utmost importance.

We want to do all this, but can we? There is in fact a great distance between vision and implementation. We have however, already covered a huge part of that distance. Our professional experience, our studies our work experience, all ensure the proper planning, organization and operation of Avali. Apart from these facts, with the help of experts and a program financed by the PRAKSIS Business Coaching Center we have drawn up a feasibility study and business plan ready for implementation. And the most important is that Avali is our best bet in life!

It is certain that together we will cover the remaining distance.

Avali…A place of joy, relaxation and contact for parents and children on the autism spectrum. A space that unites two parallel worlds; the world of children within the Autistic Spectrum Disorder and the world of their parents.      

Avali concerns the creation of a unique space in Greece (and not only), which combines the needs of relaxation and enjoyment for children withing the Autistic Spectrum Disorder as well as the relaxation needs, information exchange and social contact between the parents of these children. In other words, the coexistence of what are otherwise two parallel worlds.

Avali's Venues!

The first venue will host children within the Autistic Spectrum Disorder and will use the principles of Sensory Integration, in a structured and secure environment outfitted with the appropriate equipment.

The second venue will be for the parents and the child minders. It will provide the services of a classic café and provide the right conditions to allow people to relax, communicate among themselves, exchange points of view, learn from each other etc.

The main focus of design and equipment will be place in the venue where the children will be hosted. The basic idea involves the creation of a special Sensory Integration (snoezelen-sensory) center. This provides an invaluable source of sensory experiences, which lead to relaxation, gratification and stimulation of sensory experiences. It provides opportunities for the development of social, cognitive, motor-function capabilities and is the ideal and safest of environments encouraging movement, communication, self – expression, exploration, creative and imaginary play.

Avali’s second main area will be created for parents. The aim is to create a multifunctional café – a living room of sorts, where parents will be able to drink a beverage, to communicate or to take some time off on their own, to invite friends, play board games, listen to music and much more…

In this venue there will also be a small library with basic books and studies on the Autistic Spectrum Disorder and a PC area, so that parents can remain updated, search what they want, communicate with equivalent centers and groups within the country or abroad.

The planning requires light and clever structures where the parent’s venue can easily be converted into a space for lectures, dance, movie screenings, a restaurant or theatre.

The primary purpose is to create an area of love and understanding that can meet the needs of «special» children and their «special parents».

We should not forget that:

• Today, 1 in 50 individuals are diagnosed with Autistic Spectrum Disorder, with growth rates of 10-17% per year
• Autism occurs in all racial, ethnic and social groups and is four times more likely to occur in boys than girls
• Autism is the fastest – growing serious developmental disorder globally and already concerns tens of millions individuals worldwide. 

And whilst in many countries great strides have been made in family support and relief, in Greece, where the number of families with children in the autism spectrum is in the hundreds of thousands, there is:

• A lack of public education to the point that it is practically non-existent, especially for early ages which is the most important
• Lack of services supporting families at home
• Inadequacy of services for psychological support, information and training regarding individuals on the Autistic Spectrum Disorder.

The Creation of Avali...

The total costs for the creation of Avali, are in fact very high, as are the costs for the design and implementation of infrastructures for children with specific needs. Safety issues, hygiene and access to Avali coupled with the large amount required for the design, operation and maintenance of the snoezelen room, all raise the required amounts needed. The minimum amount required in order to be able to start the operation of Avali, rises to 80.000€.

From this seed fund, we have already secured through our own resources, friends and acquaintances a total of 40.000€

The amount of 11.000€ we are asking with this project will cover 63% of the cost of the children’s venue, which is for us the most inflexible in terms of planning and implementation of Avali. 

The remainder is scheduled to be covered by presentations to foundations, organizations, institutions and companies that have Corporate Social Responsibility departments, Social Solidarity departments or wish to support new business efforts.

Of course we know the difficulties and the «difficult» nature of achieving all of the above. But we also know and believe much more in our Avali.

If we are able to gather the rest of the required amount of 29.000€, we will be able to put the key in the door!!! The closer we get to our goal the sooner we can serve our children and their families!!!

Hearty thanks!

We want to thank all of you who read and shared our vision. We want to thank and to highlight our gratitude to those who have already supported this effort financially.  We want to thank all of you who wanted but cannot help us due to the current economic times. However, please do help by spreading information about our campaign to your friend and acquaintances.

We want to thank all the executives of Special Education who helped our little prince, Vassili, our family and ourselves to plan the Avali in the best way possible.

We want to thank our friends and relatives who stood by us and support our effort.

We want to warmly thank PRAKSIS NGO and the executives who support, help and give us the necessary professional knowledge for the proper planning and implementation of the Avali project.

Footnote:

All donations are managed by the NGO PRAKSIS. In other words, your financial support is not provided straight to the entrepreneurs as a one-off cash donation. A specific process is followed whereby the entrepreneur receives a pre-agreed amount once s/he has met a specific set of targets. Upon reaching a specific milestone, new funds are released. By managing donations through an independent and credible NGO we ensure that the full amount of the entrepreneur’s funding, is used to maximum effect, that the businessman is held accountable. This allows us to provide continuous updates to each donor on the activities of the entrepreneur and to ensure that the entrepreneur works closely with us. One-up provides information, monitoring and transparency in order to secure that every cent of your donation is used in the most effective manner possible.