Stephen, our friendly 25-year-old son, first received services from Montgomery County Infant and Toddlers and the Preschool Education Program. Later, he spent many years in early intervention at home learning within an Applied Behavior Analysis program. Stephen has overcome many challenges including significant language delays so he now often speaks in full sentences.
Upon graduating from Walter Johnson High School, Stephen attended the Community Careers and Connections program targeting travel training and vocational skills. As an intern, Stephen completed the Project SEARCH program in 2015. As a result of Project SEARCH, our family is very proud of Stephen attaining a permanent position with the City of Rockville. He has been working at the Rockville Municipal Swim Center for three years as a General Services Aide. His duties include custodial work and occasional helping out at the front desk, which showcases his customer service skills. Stephen hopes to become a Slide Guard assisting with pool safety as well.
In his leisure time, Stephen enjoys music, playing basketball and watching his favorite sports teams including the Wizards and the Redskins. Stephen spends time in the community eating at restaurants and attending Best Buddies events. He loves the yoga class with other Main Street members. As a lifelong learner, Stephen occasionally attends classes at Montgomery College.
Stephen has a younger brother who is in graduate school at Penn State University. Our family had often wondered how Stephen would adjust to moving out of our family home. Although we are planning for supports, we are especially committed in supporting him to stay involved in the community. When we learned about Main Street, we were extremely encouraged that perhaps this would be another piece of the puzzle for Stephen creating his best life. Our family is excited to see the future with Stephen and others in the Main Street family!
