Program Director Spotlight: Lisa Pugliese of Boynton Beach, Florida

ACEing Autsim could not run without it’s amazing volunteer Program Directors, and this year we’d like to start a new tradition of acknowledging one in each newsletter. Naturally, we had to start with Lisa. In addition to having worked with us since 2011, Lisa is always organizing and representing ACEing Autism at events and fundraisers in her community. Lisa is a Speech-Language Pathologist specializing in children with autism. Lisa says “I want to give back to a sport that has given me so much in life, especially to children who haven’t been given those opportunities. I want to make a difference in their lives so that they reach their true potential, to help give them a voice. Thank you to ACEing Autism for enabling me to teach tennis to these amazing children, who teach us more about life than we could ever teach them.” Thank you, Lisa. We are so grateful for you and all that you do!

Volunteer Spotlight: Megan Wasson of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Megan’s Program Director Sara Longo could not wait to nominate her for our first Volunteer Spotlight. Sara tells us “Megan has stepped up to the plate to help at almost every single ACEing session that I’ve held over the past two and a half years. Megan is patient, caring, and personable. She explains things so that the kids can understand her directions and she makes sure that each child is interacting with his/her peers. Megan emails a few days before each session to make sure that I have enough volunteers committed to attending. If I don’t, she goes crazy texting all of her Duquesne teammates and friends to make sure that we have enough. Megan has also brought ACEing Autism to the attention of her university marketing and nonprofit classes, increasing ACEing’s exposure and allowing others to learn from the great business model that ACEing has built.” Thank you Megan, for being such a devoted advocate of our program and our participants!