The 15th Annual Autism Awareness Walk, originally slated for May 2, 2020, was postponed due to the Coronavirus. We tentatively rescheduled the event with the hopes that we could meet in person on September 12th. At this time, it is unclear if the CDC or NYS-DOH will allow a large crowd by that date. Therefore, we are going VIRTUAL! #RaisingAwarenessTogetherWhileApart

The Virtual Autism Awareness Walk will be held between September 7th - September 12th. Walk in your neighborhood, walk with your families, walk with your teams. The Walk is a family-friendly, inclusive event which focuses on increasing awareness, acceptance, and understanding of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), while also raising funds to support our mission to empower individuals and families touched by ASD through support and education.  

We ask participants to register using our fundraising platform, EDH. Please follow this link: https://autism-awareness-walk-may-2-2020.everydayhero.do/  (please note that we have not yet updated this platform to reflect that we are going virtual).   Please set a fundraising goal. Team captains raising $1000 or more will receive a THANK YOU lawn sign. Your team photo will also be posted to the Walk page.  

1.  Team Captains should create a fun hashtag for their team.

2.  Be creative. Help us raise awareness in your own unique, but safe, way!

3.  Members of teams/sub-teams can choose to do their one-mile walk anytime during the week leading up to September 12th.

4. Each individual or team should post photos of themselves (walking, making/holding signs to raise awareness, wearing a unique team shirt, etc) to the Autism Awareness Walk FB page, your own FB page, Twitter, or Instagram. Useyour team hashtag AND the AANENY hashtag  #RaisingAwarenessTogetherWhileApart.

5. PLEASE. Be SAFE. Follow CDC, NYS-DOH and local guidelines related to coronavirus precautions. Wear masks. Practice social distancing.

Our raffle is also going virtual! We will host a silent auction for our raffle baskets, which we will advertise via pictures on our Autism Awareness Walk Facebook page September 1st through September 11th. On Saturday,September 12th we will do a 12-hour silent auction from 8 am through 8 pm. Bids will be in $1 increments. The highest bidder by 8 pm will win the basket.

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History of the Autism Awareness Walk and Autism Alliance of Northeastern NY:

The first Autism Awareness Walk was held in 2005 at the Oval in Plattsburgh. The community welcomed this annual event with open arms. The event continued to be held annually. In 2011, the founders of the Walk chose to organize into a non-profit organization, and Autism Alliance of Northeastern NY (AANENY) was born. The charitable purpose of AANENY is to empower individuals and families touched by Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) in Clinton, Essex and Franklin counties through support and education. The Autism Awareness Walk is the sole fundraising event for AANENY.  All funds raised stay within our tri-county community.

Funds raised last year were used in the following ways: 

• Provided technology grants to individuals with ASD, which included iPads and software to support communication, socialization, organization, time management, etc. Also provided grants to individuals for sensory equipment, including swings, trampolines and weighted blankets, to assist with self-regulation, emotional control, attention, etc. Both of these grants also help to improve the individuals' interactions and relationships in the home and community.
• Provided funding for Sensory kits to be distributed to every agency in Clinton County that provides EMS services and transportation (with special thanks to Christina Zielinski, South Plattsburgh Fire Department, and Clinton County EMS Advisory Committee).
• Continued our new community grant to address social and recreational opportunities for adults on the spectrum. 
• Provided grants to many local schools and organizations; grant monies were used to expand inventory of sensory equipment, educational materials, and class offerings to benefit individuals with ASD. 
• Offered scholarships to local students with ASD to attend college or secondary education. 
• Donated ASD-related titles to schools in the tri-county area and to the CEF Library System. 
• Partnered with other local agencies at family-friendly events to promote autism awareness as well as awareness of other community resources. 
• Distributed annual publication of Regional Autism Resources to assist the community with locating local resources that support individuals with ASD.

* Hosted Puppets in Education at Momot Elementary School in Plattsburgh. This troupe provides education through an inclusive model, which promotes empathy for autistic individuals by modeling, labeling, explaining, and normalizing the characteristics of autism, while never singling out any individual who may be participating in the program.

Last year's Walk was led by Team Ohmcentric, pictured below, who raised over $3,100!

Team Ohmcentric (above) - top fundraising team in 2019

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                   Please acknowledge and support our amazing sponsors:

Platinum Level Sponsors 2020

Gold Level Sponsors 2020

Silver Level Sponsors 2020

Bronze Level Sponsors 2020