Inclusive Sports and Fitness in Holbrook.

Inclusive Sports and Fitness in Holbrook. Credit: Inclusive Sports and Fitness/Alexander Lopez

Inclusive Sports and Fitness, in Holbrook, which offers a sports and fitness program for children with autism or developmental disabilities, has used more than $100,000 in grants to add a specialized treadmill that lets children kick a soccer ball and more as they walk, a climbing wall, and bikes for interactive spin classes.

“The idea is that we provide sports-based and fitness-based activities that are designed to change brain performance,” says Alexander Lopez, an associate professor of occupational therapy at the New York Institute of Technology in Old Westbury and volunteer executive director of Inclusive Sports and Fitness. Instructors help normalize kids’ throwing, running and other movement and performance skills, Lopez says. These improvements can in turn help kids' social and academic lives, he says.

“My son really enjoys it and gets a good workout,” says Sarah Orlando of Sayville, whose son, Aidan, 12, attends the sessions. “He really loves the rock wall, and he also likes the interactive biking.”

The new equipment was made possible by a $100,000 grant from the John C. Dunphy Private Foundation, which provides resources for community-based programs, and grants from other private organizations, Lopez says. Kids in the program come for 90-minute, small group sessions twice a week for 12 weeks, Lopez says. The cost is $600, which breaks down to about $25 per session, he says.

Inclusive Sports and Fitness is at 5004 Veterans Hwy., Holbrook. For more information, email inclusivesports@outlook.com or visit inclusivesportsandfitness.org.

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