What is Stratos Sphere?
As a multi-year advisory board member for ConnectMed, I’m excited to announce our newest program: Stratos Sphere. Stratos Sphere is a dream many of us on the board have envisioned for years, and it creates a youth-driven neuro-divergent community in San Diego.
ConnectMed’s newest program aims to provide youth on the autism spectrum and their parents/caregivers with positive, inclusive, and impactful opportunities for connection and community support.
As a mother of a teenager on the autism spectrum, the launch of Stratos Sphere is a dream come true for us. My son’s involvement in naming the community and logo design ideas reflects our shared vision of creating an inclusive community for preteens and teens. Our Stratos Sphere community will focus on developing social-building skills while respecting sensory needs and fostering a space of inclusivity.
On October 6th, we held our first community event and hosted youth from the ages of 12 to 17. I want to thank all involved at ConnectMed and give special thanks to CSUSM College of Business for taking on our senior experience project, which fed insights into developing a much-needed gap in San Diego.
Highlights from the Event
- Where was it: San Diego, Helen Woodward Animal Shelter
- What did we do: Animal encounter tour, parent support time, and activities/games
- How many showed: about 9 teens with their parents/caregivers
- Event notables:
- The students thrived in the environment as a small group of 9 focused on sensory inclusion activities.
- No matter your age, an animal still brings out the best in you and fosters the ability to collaborate, share experiences, and socialize.
- Parents need a community just as much as preteens/teens; being able to share our children’s strengths and weaknesses and having others provide recommendations and support is huge. It makes us feel like we aren’t alone.
- Each of these amazing young people are inspiring in their own way.
- I (Y’vonne) had the privilege of kicking off the parent’s corner. What I discovered is many of us parents saw strength in another teen that the parent of that team saw as a weakness. It was so lovely to highlight the gifts others see in our children.
- We each shared how important it is not only for our teens to have a community but for us parents as well. Once a child on the spectrum gets into double digits, struggles with puberty, and social challenges it becomes even harder to find a place for parents to find others that can relate and offer advice and support. We are all teachers and learners.
- If you put like-minded individuals together they will organically build social skills (teens and parents). It creates a comfortable environment to foster communication.
Coming Soon . . .
Our next Stratos Sphere event for neurodivergent teens 12 to 17 is in the works and if you’d like to be part of future events, please reach out!
Y’vonne Ormond
5P Consulting – CEO
ConnectMed International Board Member
