ADLER APHASIA CENTER’S SOMETHING SPECIAL COMES TO BOULDER RUN SHOPPING CENTER IN TIME FOR THE HOLIDAYS
Thanks to the generosity of Hekemian & Co., a Property Management company located in Hackensack, NJ and friends of the Adler Aphasia Center, Something Special, a unique jewelry and gift design store, will open its first pop-up storefront for the holidays in Boulder Run Shopping Center in Wyckoff, New Jersey. Its jewelry and gifts are designed and created by people with aphasia, a communication disorder that is a result of a traumatic brain injury, a tumor or in most cases, a stroke, and impairs the expression and understanding of spoken language, reading, and writing. All store proceeds go to support the programs and services, education and training, and research at the Adler Aphasia Center, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.
As Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords continues her recuperation from the tragic accident in January, ABC News reported last night on their special with Diane Sawyer that, “She still struggles for the right words to form sentences, a condition called aphasia that is common in brain injury patients.” The Adler Aphasia Center, one of the largest aphasia therapy centers in the country located in Maywood, NJ, notes that Giffords is one of almost two million Americans that have been diagnosed with aphasia. This disorder is more common than multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy and cerebral palsy.
As the only post-rehab, long-term therapeutic program for people with aphasia in the entire Metropolitan area, the Adler Aphasia Center offers an extensive program to help people with aphasia lead more productive and satisfying lives through greater independence. In this effort, the Center embarked on a very special vocational program a few years ago that offers training in gift and jewelry design and production as well as marketing and business development. Called Something Special, this program was developed by two young women in their early forties who suffered strokes, joined the Center and found they both shared a love of jewelry design. In just two short years, Something Special is now a cottage industry for the non-profit Center and has grossed more than $50,000 in sales. The program engages more than two dozen Center members with aphasia who design and create this jewelry while generating revenue to support the Center’s programs. The training also offers important therapeutic benefits for people with communication deficits and physical disabilities resulting from stroke or brain trauma, and helps them acquire new communication and motor skills.
Something Special will open its doors on Wednesday, November 23rd at Boulder Run Shopping Center, 327 Franklin Avenue, Wyckoff, New Jersey. Days of operation and store hours will be: Wednesdays from 11:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. The store will remain open through December 24th.
For more information about the Adler Aphasia Center in Maywood, New Jersey, visit their website at www.adleraphasiacenter.org, or call 201.368.8585. To learn more about Something Special and to view the jewelry line, visit www.somethingspecialaphasia.org.
About the Adler Aphasia Center
The Adler Aphasia Center, a non-profit organization, is a community center that addresses the long-term needs of people with aphasia, a language disorder caused by stroke or other brain injury. It is the only center of its kind in the New York-New Jersey area, a region that contains an estimated 20,000 people with aphasia. The programs and activities offered at the Adler Aphasia Center all share the primary goals of enhancing the communication skills of its members, providing opportunities for social and peer support, and building members’ self-esteem and self-confidence. The Center offers training, educational programs, and on-site visits in order to share its unique model of care with a national and international audience of health care professionals, consumers, educators, students, speech-language pathologists and others interested in improving the quality of life for those persons affected by aphasia. In addition, the Center is actively engaged in research efforts examining the impact of its programs and collaborates with aphasia researchers worldwide. Founded in 2003 by Elaine and Mike Adler, its mission is simple: to be a vital resource to anyone whose life or profession is touched by aphasia. This year the Adler Aphasia Center was awarded top prize as Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Center of the Year at the 2011 NJBIZ Healthcare Heroes Award Program sponsored by NJBIZ, New Jersey’s premier business news publication. The Center has also been recognized by Children’s Aid and Family Services as the recipient of the 2011 Nonprofit Leadership Award and by Verizon as one of the recipients of their Check into Literacy program.
60 West Hunter Avenue, Maywood, NJ 07607 • 201.368.8585 • Fax 201.587.1909 www.adleraphasiacenter.org