By Anna Riley
For the Opelika Observer
A partnership between the Lee County Autism Resource and Advocacy organization and the AMC Classic Tiger 13 Theater at Capps Landing provides monthly opportunities to parents of children with autism or other learning disabilities to watch sensory-friendly movies.
Sensory-friendly movies accommodate individuals with special needs or autism by having dimmer lights, no movie previews and reduced sound.
Maria Gutierrez, LCARA co-founder and vice president, said that the movies fill a crucial need in the community and allow children opportunities to enjoy themselves without being judged. LCARA is a nonprofit organization that hosts several workshops and family events offering educational, literacy and social opportunities to raise autism awareness in Lee County.
Opelika’s Lewis Cooper Jr. Memorial Library will also look to give children opportunities to learn and have fun this summer through offering sensory-friendly story-telling sessions June 9, July 21 and Aug.18.
From 9:30 -10:30 a.m in the library’s meeting room, library staff will engage participants through story-telling, music and movement.
Thomas Stickley, a Lewis Cooper Jr. Memorial Library assistant, said the program started as “an idea to do more programs and to be more inclusive for the entire community.”
According to the Center for Disease Control, 1-in-68 U.S. children have autism spectrum disorders.
For more information, visit leecountyautism.com.
