Join Friendship Circle as it breaks ground for the new LifeTown center in Livingston on Monday, June 6. LifeTown will be a 47,000-sq.-ft. center that will redefine the landscape for individuals with special needs. The historic groundbreaking event will kick off with special activities for the whole family followed by the formal groundbreaking ceremony.
“We invite the entire community to join us as we start building this one-of-a-kind center,” says Executive Director Zalman Grossbaum. “LifeTown will make a difference in the lives of people with special needs from throughout our region and beyond. It will put Livingston on the map as a key resource in creating a truly integrative setting where individuals with special needs will participate in programs and activities side by side with the greater community.”
With research continuing to show New Jersey with the highest rate of autism in the US, families around the country are looking to the Garden State for services and support. As the first of its kind in the region, LifeTown’s recreational, therapeutic and educational facilities will help bring families with special-needs members out of isolation, and help individuals with special needs build the day-to-day skills needed for independent living.
The building’s centerpiece will be “Life Village,” where participants will be able to use real-world settings, like the bank or the doctor’s office, to practice skills from budgeting to time management, and much more. The center will also help volunteers learn the skills necessary to assist and interact with individuals with special needs. These shared experiences will help build a community that is inclusive and accessible for children, teens and adults with special needs.
Further, LifeTown will bring innovation to the field of special education, for both the students and educators. A customized interactive APP, which utilizes an emerging technology platform, will prompt and track specific activities for students based on their Individualized Education Program, ensuring that each individual experience is maximized.
Hundreds of people are expected to turn out to celebrate this historic occasion, which will include the laying of the building’s cornerstone by area children. The festivities kick off at 5 p.m. with hot dogs, knishes, bounce-house rides and fun for the whole family, followed by the groundbreaking ceremony at 6 p.m., at 10 Microlab Road in Livingston.
For more details and to RSVP, visit www.lifetown.com/groundbreaking or call 973-251-0200.
