Services for autism steeply decline into adulthood, with barriers to service needs making it challenging for individuals to find opportunities to participate in social outings. Nonprofits, such as Families for Effective Treatment of Autism, serve to fill service gaps for autistic teens and adults. FEAT hosts Spectrum Connects, social gatherings that give attendees the opportunity to socialize and learn in non-competitive and accessible environments. 

Jennifer Strobel, who first got involved with FEAT as a parent of an autistic child attending support meetings, is the executive director of FEAT, which provides a variety of support programs and events to the Las Vegas valley, from poker to cooking classes. 

“I have a 27 year old daughter, so I’ve been doing this for over 20 years. And if we don’t provide it, chances are we know someone who does,” Strobel said. 

One such event took place on June 3rd, at Henderson’s Chicken N Pickle, a restaurant and pickleball venue with indoor and outdoor courts. In the indoor courts, FEAT’s Spectrum Connects attendees gathered to play and socialize, in a low pressure, relaxed atmosphere. Strobel greeted families as they came in, often greeting frequent FEAT attendees by name. All FEAT events are free to families and individuals, providing a no-cost option for people to meet and socialize.  

The event, like many of FEAT’s events, was open to both teens and adults. Teens and adults are an undeserved group when it comes to autism resources and social events, and late adolescence is a critical period for social skill building. Social interactions are important for people on the autism spectrum. Social skill deficits, which can be common on the spectrum, can be a significant obstacle for both individuals and their parents, and be a deterrent to social outings.

All courts at Chicken N Pickle are ADA accessible and the venue also hosts free adaptive pickleball lessons on the first Monday of every month, open to players with disabilities.  

Upcoming FEAT events can be found at https://featsonv.org/events. 

FEAT’s autism community resources directory can be found at https://featsonv.org/resource-directory.