A MONTH OF DISCOVERY APRIL 2023

TCFD: A Month of Discovery

Friends and Supporters,

April was a month of great hope and joy here at The Center. We saw new life on every corner of our campus – from the fields to the barns. At the same time, we showcased our nearly complete Children’s Specialty Hospital to top state officials, trained the local police force, and so much more.

Here is a brief look at what we’ve been up to:

Department of Health Officials Visit New Children’s Specialty Hospital

During a recent visit, we were honored to give a progress report and tour of our new Children’s Specialty Hospital and TCFD campus to NYS Department of Health Acting Commissioner Dr. James McDonald and his team.

Afterwards he said, “You have such a beautiful community here.” It was a wonderful compliment from someone who knows our state and the challenges of our complex field so well.

The DOH team’s visit coincided with some outdoor landscaping and paving work being done at the hospital right now.

Dreamin’ of Greens – it’s CSA Time!

It’s time to sign up for your 2023 CSA Share! Please check out the 2023 Membership Prospectus with nearly 50 different fruits and vegetables. Soon you will be slicing, dicing, sautéing, roasting, grilling, and wowing friends and family with the best peppers and sweet corn anywhere – and adding celeriac, kohlrabi, escarole – even rutabaga into your menus.

Click here for the prospectus and order form.

Training Our Local Police with Virtual Reality Technology

We are so grateful to have had the opportunity to train one of our local police departments in common behaviors of complex individuals like those with the diagnosis of autism.

The Liberty Police Department approached our Virtual Reality/Bioinformatics and Education Team about collaborative work and training. Devin Brust, a former Liberty Detective and our Senior Director of Safety and Security, Conor Anderson, TCFD’s Director of Bioinformatics and Technology, and TCFD Assistant Chief of our Pediatric Residential Program, Nick Niosi, worked with several Liberty officers to recruit actors, film, and produce the virtual reality videos.

“The process of making the virtual reality videos was an amazing opportunity to work with staff members at The Center in a collaborative process. I think my officers learned a great deal about how The Center for Discovery and other organizations like theirs function. The staff members got to experience law enforcement’s perspective on how we respond to various situations. I think everyone learned a great deal,” Liberty Police Chief Steven D’Agata commented in an article in the Sullivan County Democrat.

“The police officers overwhelmingly participated in the training through discussion, as well as gave great, supportive feedback,” added Nick Niosi, “They were taken back by the VR process.”

You can read more about this great work here.

The TCFD team is already working on plans for additional videos (one police and three emergency response) and trainings, and a pathway to access this work for additional law enforcement.

New Spring Campaign – Season of Renewal

In this season, please help us spread the great news of our work and its importance for our community.

April marked the beginning of our spring fundraising campaign to support TCFD’s one-of-a-kind programming and upcoming Children’s Specialty Hospital. Please share with friends all that you know about the critical work we do here. Donating is easy through this link.