ASDY-Tech Team: Gabriel
ASDY-TECH is a NEW (Jobs-related) Program initiated by The HDS Foundation, Inc. This program focuses on providing training and potential employment to young adults who are on the Autism Spectrum. ASDY-TECH (coined after the Autism Spectrum Disorder Young adults), has been designed as a micro-enterprise entity of The HDS Foundation, Inc, and focuses on small technical projects that can be scaled to address the employment needs of this population, while meeting the requirements of different businesses and persons.
Every Thursday, for the remainder of January, the HDS Foundation would like to introduce you to our great team members and what they do at ASDY Tech.
Gabriel told us, “What I do at HDS is a variety of jobs. Sometimes, I upload the information I was given into the database. Other times, I’m given a file to put in the scanner to make it digital. I can prepare the file to be scanned by putting the info where it is supposed to be.”
FBI Miami Citizens Academy Alumni Association Toy Drive
Carla Otiniano, Program Manager of the HDS Foundation, visited with the FBI Miami Citizens Academy Alumni Association (FBI Miami CAAA) on Monday, December 17, 2018, to contribute to underserved children in the community. HDS provided a donation of $1000 to the FBI Miami CAAA. With this donation the organization was able to purchase lots toys for children from newborn to 17, donated by HDS Companies.
The mission of the FBI Miami CAAA is to provide students, parents, business leaders, and the community at large with information programs and services through community-based projects, with particular emphasis on youth development and academic excellence.
If you would like more information on FBI Miami CAAA and how you can contribute to this great organization, visit https://www.fbicaaamiami.org/.
The HDS Foundation is a 501 (c) 3 Non-Profit organization founded to provide mentoring services and opportunities to Teens and Young Adults who have Autism-related disabilities. To donate, please visit https://www.hdsfoundation.org/donate/ or email Carla.Otiniano@hdsfoundation.org.
Pantry of Broward Toy Drive
Every year during the holidays, HDS Companies donates toys to those who are less fortunate. This year HDS donated to Pantry of Broward, an organization who serves not only seniors in need who are on low, fixed incomes, but also grandparents raising their grandchildren. Each month, the Pantry of Broward provides over 400 clients each with a 55-pound box of nutritional food, including fruits, vegetables, and bread.
The HDS donation consisted of $500 worth of toys, for children ranging in age from new born to 17 years old. Duilio M. Roldan, Warehouse Manager of the Pantry of Broward, facilitated the pick-up of toys from HDS with Carla Otiniano, Program Manager of the HDS Foundation.
If you would like more information on Pantry of Broward and how you can donate to this worthy cause, visit https://www.foodpantries.org/li/fl-food-pantry-of-broward.
The HDS Foundation is a 501 (c) 3 Non-Profit organization founded to provide mentoring services and opportunities to Teens and Young Adults who have Autism-related disabilities. To donate, please visit https://www.hdsfoundation.org/donate/ or email Carla.Otiniano@hdsfoundation.org.
BRIDGES Annual Holiday Luncheon at Chili’s with The HDS Foundation
On Wednesday, December 12th, the BRIDGES class from Cypress Bay High School held their annual holiday luncheon at Chili’s in Weston. In attendance were all the students, their instructors, interning teachers, and also invited guests including members of the ASDY-Tech and HDS Foundation teams. The luncheon was not only an activity to celebrate the holidays, but it also was an opportunity for the students to continue mastering the social and daily activity skills they have been working on all school year.
The luncheon began once the students and guests arrived at the restaurant. They were seated and quickly began ordering their meals. After everyone finished dining, the class did their Secret Santa gift exchange. They were each presented a gift, that had been purchased and wrapped by the Secret Santas, that came from AC Moore. Each gift also contained a card from the Secret Santas. After all gifts were distributed, it was a joy to hear the classmates sincerely thanking each other and enjoying their gifts.
After the gift exchange ended, Meagan Bouscher, Board Member of HDS Foundation distributed to each student and teacher a gift containing a holiday card and gift card. The gift cards can be used to purchase holiday gifts, to use during future field trips, or the students have the choice to use them at their own discretion.
AJ Silberman, Special Projects Liaison at HDS companies, was one of the guests at the event. She said, “There are so many daily life skills that most people take for granted, or consider simple, that can be a struggle for others. It was rewarding to witness the students mingling with one another, ordering and paying for their own meals, knowing that this activity is one of many that will help lead them towards independent living in the future.”
The HDS Foundation is honored to help support the BRIDGES class at Cypress Bay High School so that they can continue to experience activities such as this holiday luncheon. If you would like to donate to the HDS Foundation, visit www.HDSFoundation.org. You can also help the foundation by making your Amazon purchases through the Amazon Smile program.
Visit www.smile.amazon.com and assign the HDS Foundation as your selected charity. Whenever you purchase on Amazon, make sure to log in through the Amazon Smile page. This can be done all year long!
The HDS Foundation thoroughly enjoyed being part of the BRIDGES holiday luncheon, and they want to wish everyone a happy holiday and a prosperous New Year.
ASDY-Tech visits BRIDGES Cypress Bay
On November 30, 2018, employees of ASDY-Tech visited the BRIDGES program at Cypress Bay High School in Weston, FL. A jobs related program initiated by the HDS Foundation, ASDY-Tech is coined after Autism Spectrum Disorder Young-Adults, and it focuses on small technical projects that can be scaled to address the employment needs of this population.
One purpose of the visit to the BRIDGES program at Cypress Bay was to illustrate to the students that those with related Autism disorders have opportunities for employment after high school. The ASDY-Tech employees who presented (Marco Spinelli, Miguel Sanchez, and Mario Rumasuglia) all have different backgrounds which prepared them for their jobs with ASDY-Tech. High school, technical school, and the Dan Marino Campus were just some of the experiences that helped prepare them to enter the workforce.
Carla Otiniano, Program Manager of the HDS Foundation, led the discussion. She began with an overview of the HDS Foundation and the ASDY-Tech program. She then introduced the ASDY-Tech employees and they each took turns telling the students a little bit about themselves. This was followed with an explanation of the path each took to get to ASDY, including what it felt like to experience a job interview and how not all interviews become employment opportunities. The presentation then led into each of the employees explaining what their specific job functions are at ASDY-Tech – Miguel is a prepper, Marco is a scanner, and Mario works as an uploader. The instructors and especially the students were very impressed with ASDY-Tech and the importance of their roles. The presentation drew towards its conclusion with a question and answer session, where the BRIDGES students posed some great questions to the ASDY-Tech team. Carla reminded everyone, “Never give up. If one door closes, try another one. These young men are an example of that, and because of their experiences, they are better employees today.”
The ASDY-Tech employees did an excellent job of presenting. To celebrate, they enjoyed a lunch at Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza before returning to work.
If you would like more information on the ASDY-Tech program, please visit our website: www.hdsfoundation.org or email info@hdsfoundation.org.
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