OAK RIDGE, Tenn. — Xander's Place in Oak Ridge has a personal connection to Mindy Wilson, its founder. It's named after the first nonverbal, autistic child she had in her classroom. His family had just moved to East Tennessee from Alabama and was working to get settled into the community.
Through Wilson, Xander's family was able to find resources to support the young student. Now, she provides families across Tennessee with the resources they may need.
"We make a list of all of those resources for them, all in one place so that they're not trying to drink out of a fire hose of internet information," said Kami Morgan, the executive director of Xander's Place.
While the organization connects families with resources in East Tennessee, it also helps families build relationships with each other. That way, Xander's Place believes families can speak with people who know what they're going through.
"These families need other families that are very similar to them, that are a part of that journey. Having a safe person to communicate with, having a safe person to know that, 'I can go over to your house and play and have no judgement if my kid has a tantrum,'" said Wilson.
The people at Xander's Place are also working to make spaces around the area more inclusive, because they know some families may feel left out.
"Making a difference for these families doesn't have to be a big thing. It's small little changes that they can make to things that they're already doing and that will have such a huge impact on these families and these children," said Morgan.
The group also works to help special education teachers in Anderson County get school supplies. They are currently taking donations for classrooms, and the deadline to donate is Dec. 13.