News and Knowledge

With your support during National Autism Awareness Month, OAR impacted thousands of autistic individuals, their peers, families, educators, and health care providers. Thank you for joining us and helping us to achieve this year’s campaign goals! OAR will release the total impact of our cooperative efforts in the June issue of The OARacle.

These are the campaign objectives we set out to achieve in April:

• Goal 1: Educate 5,000 youth about their autistic peers using the Kit for Kids and Autism Tuned In
• Goal 2: Empower the autism community by distributing 15,000 high-quality information guides to communities across the country.
• Goal 3: Support autistic young adults through OAR’s Hire Autism Initiative by registering 100 new job seekers and recruiting 20 volunteers and 20 employer partners.
• Goal 4: Raise $80,000 for new research and resources through OAR’s signature fundraising program, RUN FOR AUTISM, by enlisting over 500 athletes.

Although April is over, there is so much more we can do as a community, particularly in the face of continued COVID restrictions. If you are looking to get involved for the first time or if you would like to do more, here are some ways you can join us:

• Volunteer your time:
  • Are you a parent or person with autism who wants to share your advice with others through a blog post?
  • Or are you a sibling committed to teaching schoolmates how to be better friends with their classmates with autism?
  • Do you want to provide training and tools in a community lacking in autism supports?
  • Do you want to work one-on-one with autistic job seekers to help them get employed?
  • If you answered yes to any of these questions, OAR is always looking for more volunteers. Learn more and apply today!
• Raise money for autism research.
  • Do you like organizing fun events? Are you a baker? Lemonade maker? If you answered yes to any of these questions, we have a great idea for you: raising money for OAR. For example, you can create your own Facebook birthday fundraiser, hold a bake sale, or set up a lemonade stand. You can also make recurring monthly donations or pay tribute to a friend or loved one. Here’s how.
  • Do you enjoy being active? If so, participate in a 5K, 10K, or marathon and donate your miles to autism research. Learn more.
• Send us your feedback and photos.
  • If you like what OAR does, then share your feedback on the GreatNonprofits website.
  • We want to know how you participated in National Autism Acceptance Month. Send us your stories and pictures at programs @ researchautism.org or share them on OAR’s Facebook page.

Much of OAR’s past and present successes are a reflection of the commitment and hard work of volunteers, donors, and followers like you. Thank you to everyone who joined our April campaign and for continuing to stay involved with us throughout the year!