HENDERSONVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — "I attempted jumbo bubbles, but the kids were much more successful doing that than I was," Abby Brown, Director of Clinical Operations at BlueSprig Pediatrics, said.
Brown spent Saturday morning at the brand new BlueSprig location in Hendersonville. They commemorated their opening with a fun-filled, sensory-friendly back-to-school event including bubbles, face painting, bouncy houses and snow cones.
BlueSprig is a provider of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Families who are already receiving care and prospective families from throughout the community showed up to enjoy the new center's event.
Lori Waltman, head clinician and center director at the new location, is passionate about ABA and wants to continue to grow its presence in Hendersonville. Her operational manager, Alyse Gajda, helped make the event a success.
"She did a phenomenal job of getting everything together," Waltman said. "Having these families come in, it's been a pleasure to do so. ABA is my passion and I just want to be able to share that with this community."
The new location is in Hendersonville because a large group of families were searching for ABA care in the area, according to Brown.
"The Hendersonville area is a very diverse community," Brown said. "We have a separate translator line that we use to make the family feel like they are involved, and we chose Hendersonville because there is a big need for a lot of families."
Waltman met a family at the opening who has nieces and nephews on the spectrum. She said the parents are excited about the new clinic because before, it was such a long drive to get anywhere with good care.
The new clinic features a music room and an art room, a peer play room and a pretend play room, a sensory room with twinkling lights and quiet music and circle time.
"We have so many opportunities here to offer that really want to have the child come in, help them be well-rounded, help them where needed and teach them socialization with their peers," Waltman said. "We are hybrid, so we hope to go out into the community with them and generalize the skills they learn here so they can take them with them."
The waiting list for the clinic is not long. If you want to learn more about the clinic or apply to be a part of it, you can go to the website, click the Hendersonville location and fill out a form there.
Or, if you have other questions you can call 629-255-0339.
