First PlacePhoenix

One of the few places that provides 3 services: housing for those on autistic spectrum, transition program to smooth the move into adulthood, and training to help family. I recently completed 360 Health course offered through Global Leadership Institute. Course breaks down into steps the skills my adult son needs to manage his own health care - how to make doctor appointments, when to use urgent care vs. emergency room, basics on insurance. Content is pragmatic and easy to use. Instructors, Maureen Casey and Brad Herron-Valenzuela, keep on-line course interactive and engaging. Highly recommend!
Mar 31st, 2022

This is Calvin's second and last year at First Place. The most noticeable achievement is that Calvin is happier than ever. He feels comfortable with who he is and OK to be himself in public without our 24/7 supervision.
Mar 12th, 2022

First Place has made a real difference in the life of our 28 year-old son Brian as well as ourselves. They provide a safe, stable environment for our son to live out his own version of independence. They have very loving, caring, smart, and passionate staff that have a heart from helping young adults like Brian.
Mar 6th, 2022

Our daughter loves First Place! She made so many connections and she is much more independent now than when she moved in.
Feb 12th, 2022

Come live at first place if you want to be brainwashed and gaslit into thinking that you're more disabled than you are. Come here if you want to be surrounded by children's books and toys and activities and bombarded with programming that will beat into your head that you aren't an adult or a full person. Come here if you want to deal with passive aggressive, out of touch staff that think that people with disabilities should be talked down to and "handled." Come live here if you want to develop speech and mental health problems you never had before because no matter how hard you try to shield yourself, you over time start to believe that you are defined by the infantilizing, condescending, microaggressive ways in which you are treated. You start to believe that you deserve it. First Place teaches residents to lie and manipulate others by showing them that a direct approach of expressing ones needs and comfort levels will not be respected. Then they sit around wondering why their residents act the way they do. They can blame residents for the downfall of the social culture within their walls all they want, but they never stop to ask themselves why things are the way they are. People living in First Place are trying to survive and to feel in control of their circumstances and to have self respect, but having their honest attempts to work things out completely used against them teaches them that as someone with a disability, the only way to get their needs met is to toy with, manipulate, and lie to neurotypical people. So come here if you want to have your entire moral compass betray you and have to leave it all behind.
Feb 17th, 2022