OSEG Foundation’s new Autism Moves program revives specialized sports opportunities for kids with ASD

By Isabella Disley

On Sunday mornings inside the RA Centre gymnasium, the bouncing basketballs and the swish of the nets are the sounds of relief for families with young, active children who have Autism Spectrum Disorder.

At this time last year, the local autism community was devastated by the news that Ausome Ottawa was forced to fold due to funding cuts, and the slew of sports and recreation activities it offered for youth with ASD evaporated in an instant.

But some programs have started to reemerge from those embers, including the OSEG Foundation’s new Autism Moves program, which is now midway through its first 12-week session at the RA.

“I think a lot of the kids, during that gap, were trying to find other sports programs and maybe participating in those, and there wasn’t the right support in those programs, and it was really challenging and a difficult time,” recounts Autism Moves program coordinator Alix Alldridge, relaying a poor experience shared by the parent of one child.

“She would leave crying and frustrated,” she notes. “But her daughter came to the (Autism Moves) program and is having a blast every week. She’s excited and thrilled to come back.

“I just heard her as she was running out the door, and she was like, ‘This was the best day ever! This was so much fun!’”

Those wins are of course the types of moments Autism Moves is after, but it’s also about accommodating the more challenging times as best as possible.

A sensory kit, including fidget toys, headphones and sunglasses, is kept on hand for participants as needed. The program makes available a break room and encourages families share about their participant’s sensory needs.

“We work really hard to make sure that we have enough support for volunteers with staff to be able to accommodate those kinds of moments, but we really take the time to come out and observe what’s happening in the environment right now and how can we best support this child,” Alldridge signals.

“It is really to provide a safe, inclusive environment for the children and for the families to have a spot where they can take their kids and know they’re going to be in a safe spot, they’re not going to be judged, they get to be themselves, and we are going to support them as their individual self.”

Autism Moves runs a pair of one-hour sessions for age 6-12 and 13-17, with around a dozen registered in each. Alldridge says she’s seen genuine happiness and excitement from the kids growing steadily since the program kicked off in early March.

The program continuously communicates with the participants and their families to receive feedback through surveys, with progress measured in different ways.

“A lot of the time, it’s getting into the gym, that could be one of those successes, and one week we were not in the gym, the next week we’re in the gym, and that is a win for us,” Alldridge explains. “It’s knowing that the families are happy and see the smiley faces of parents even when they’re walking in.

“Sometimes you see the connections with the volunteers and the kids, and then it’s so cute seeing the kids together pairing up. It’s pretty cool to see those social connections starting to happen more, which is really important.”

Alongside the OSEG Foundation, the RA Centre, Proud to be Me, Emond Harnden and Bartlett Tree Experts are sponsors of the program.

While funding had been the cause of the Ausome Ottawa shutdown, Alldridge says that Autism Moves’ biggest obstacle to future growth may prove to be building a greater volunteer pool.

Students from Algonquin College and the University of Ottawa consistently volunteered for the current 12-week session, but program leaders hope to expand the number of opportunities available in upcoming sessions, with the one next one set to begin on June 15, with registration opening on Apr. 14.

“Hopefully, if we can, we’ll open up a couple of extra programs in the next couple months or a couple of weeks, if we can make that happen,” indicates Alldridge, who’s been buoyed by the response to Autism Moves.

“We’re still very new, but I think the community is going, ‘OK, there’s a program that’s back and is supporting our athletes.’ There’s going to be a bigger net of people wanting to participate in the program.”

This article is part of the Ottawa Sports Pages’ Inclusion in Sport series. Read more about local sport inclusion initiatives at: OttawaSportsPages.ca/Ottawa-Sports-Pages-Inclusion-In-Sport-Series/.