An Army of Normal Folks - Autism Acceptance Month: Erin's Hope for Friends (Pt 2)

Episode Date: April 29, 2025

April is National Autism Acceptance Month. And in honor of it, we wanted to bring back to you one of our most compelling episodes about autism, with Army member Stacy Horst. Her daughter Erin was bullied and excluded by her peers because she had autism, which led to taking her own life at 17 years old. Only four days later, Stacy and her husband Darren heroically decided that they would do everything in their power to prevent any other family from going through this. Their non-profit, Erin’s Hope for Friends, opened a physical location called “e’s Club” where more than 400 teens and young adults with autism go on the weekends and build friendships. Support the show: https://www.normalfolks.us/premiumSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hey everybody, it's Bill Courtney with an army of normal folks and we continue with part two of our conversation with Stacy Horst right after these brief messages from our generous sponsors. And the dream season is now complete. The Golden State Warriors are the 2015 NBA champions. On the new limited podcast series, Dub Dynasty, it's been 10 years since the last NBA game and the first NBA game in the history of the NBA. And the dream season is now complete.

The dream season is now complete. The dream season is now complete. The dream season is now complete. The dream season is now complete. The dream season is now complete. The dream season is now complete. The dream season is now complete. The dream season is now complete. The Golden State Warriors are the 2015 NBA champions. On the new limited podcast series, Dub Dynasty, it's been 10 years since their shocking run to a championship. We examine the controversial move that made it possible. It's never a great conversation as a player when you hear that you're being benched. For the entire behind the scenes story of Golden State's incredible 10 year run. Listen to Dub Dynasty on the iHeartRadio app,

Apple podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. We ready to fight? I'm ready to fight. Is that what I thought? Oh, this is fighting words. OK, I'll put the hammer back. Hi, I'm George M. Johnson, a bestselling author with the second most banned book in America. Now more than ever, we need to use our voices to fight back. And that's what we're doing on Fighting Words. We're not going to let anyone silence us. That's the reason why they're banning books like yours, George. That's the reason why

they're trying to stop the teaching of Black history or queer history, any history that challenges the whitewash norm. Or put us in a box. Black people have never, ever depended on the so-called mainstream to support us. That's why we are great. We are the greatest culture makers in world history. Listen to Fighting Words on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

I'm Michael Kassin, founder and CEO of 3C Ventures, and your guide on Good Company, the podcast where I sit down with the boldest innovators shaping what's next. In this episode, I'm joined by Anjali Sood, CEO of Tubi, for a conversation that's anything but ordinary. We dive into the competitive world of streaming, how she's turning so-called niche into mainstream gold,

connecting audiences with stories that truly make them feel seen. What others dismiss as niche, we embrace as core. It's this idea that there are so many stories out there and if you can find a way to curate and help the right person discover the right content, the term that we always hear from our audience is that they feel seen.

Get a front row seat to where media, marketing, technology, entertainment, and sports collide. And hear how leaders like Anjali are carving out space and shaking things up a bit in the most crowded of markets. Listen to Good Company on the iHeart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I always had to be so good no one could ignore me. Carve my path with data and drive.

But some people only see who I am on paper. The paper ceiling. The limitations from degree screens to stereotypes that are holding back over 70 million stars. Workers skilled through alternative routes, rather than a bachelor's degree. It's time for skills to speak for themselves. Find resources for breaking through barriers at tearthepapersealing.org brought to you by Opportunity at Work and the Ad Council. Have you ever wondered if your pet is lying to you? Why is my cat not here? And I go in and she's eating my lunch.

Or if hypnotism is real? You will use this suggestion in order to enhance your cognitive control. what's inside a black hole? Well we have answers for you in the new iHeart original podcast, Science Stuff. Join me, Jorge Cham, as we tackle questions you've always wanted to know the answer to about animals, space, our brains, and our bodies. Questions like, can you survive being cryogenically frozen? This is experimental. This means never work for you. What's a quantum computer? It's not just a faster computer. It performs in a fundamentally different way. Do you really have to wait 30

minutes after eating before you can go swimming? It's not really a safety issue. It's more of a comfort issue. We'll talk to experts, break it down, and give you easy to understand explanations to fascinating scientific questions. So give yourself permission to be a science geek and listen to Science Stuff on the iHeart Video app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Let's talk about those kids. 61% of kids with level one autism fall subject to bullying and social isolation. 61%, sick, three out of five kids that are already struggling with having autism are bullied and subject social

oscillation with depression rates and suicidal thoughts, 50% higher in children with level one autism than the general population. Meaning that there's a large number of kids with autism trying to mainstream and get through life, handling their difficulties and their families along with them. And there's a bunch of those kids that are having suicidal thoughts because they're so sad and so isolated as a result of the people around them bullying them.

One out of 10 has suicidal tendencies. One out of 10. And in Tennessee, Florida right now, there's diagnosed, roughly 435,000 autistic adults, and that can be an 18-year-old. Tennessee has 145,000. Okay. So in Florida, you said 435. Yep. 10%. That means there's 43,000 suicidal autistic people in the state of Florida right now. That's what the math says. Oh, yeah. Well, that's... I mean, they have suicidal thoughts. And I think in level one, when we go back to what you were talking about before, in terms of level one, two, and three, and I am not a psychologist or a psychiatrist, I

don't play one on TV. You know, level one, they're more aware of what's going on around them, I believe. And they're more aware of the isolation. Which makes them probably more susceptible to suicidal tendencies because much like my brother-in-law Ben, they're high enough functioning, they see it. So, honestly, if you're sitting here listening to us today, before we even get to the… There is redemption coming everybody. It's not, let's all ball listening to this day. But if you didn't tear up here in the story so far, something's wrong with you. There should be a call. There should be a call to parents. If you have kids and you're blessed with happy, healthy, completely functional

normal kids without a whole bunch of stuff, for goodness sakes, talk to them. Explain to them that sometimes there are people around you that aren't just like you, but they are most deserving of our grace and our understanding. Talk to your kids because we could fix a lot of this if just parents would have kids have a more understanding, graceful heart about people around them that may look or act a little differently. Amen. So that's one. Number two is Aaron's story is the one we are learning about and know today.

But the data shows that Aaron's story is not at all a one-off. And unfortunately, Aaron's story also puts a light on the fact that there are a lot of people who are probably quietly and maybe even unknown having suicidal thoughts as a result of their isolation, their bullying and the way people around them treat them. Absolutely. They're not creating, they're not thinking of committing suicide because of the autism. They're thinking of committing suicide because of how people treat them because they have something that they didn't ask for and that they're trying to deal with in their life,

which if you think about the depth of that is heartbreaking. LESLIE KENDRICK It's very heartbreaking. And a lot of them choose to be isolated because that's the only way they can be, which I think is wrong too. Because so many of them're some of the friends that Erin did have every year on the anniversary of her death. They reach out, which I think is beautiful. And they are all on the spectrum. And even this year in January, one of them, she said, I just choose to be by myself. Because at least when she's by herself, she doesn't get ridiculed. Yes, and she knows what to expect, right? We're all creatures of habit in our lives and want normalcy and schedule.

It's kind of like knowing when you come into work, most of the time you know what's going to happen today. You know, there's going to be something different here and there, but not on a major scale. So we all have, you know, the ability to go through life and it's just going to be kind of going along except for the bumps in the road where I think they sometimes isolate themselves because they don't want to have to deal with more bumps than we have. Because if you put yourself out there and you get shot down, you put yourself out there and nobody pays attention to you, you put yourself out there and nobody talks to you, then why do it?talks to you, then why do it?

Well, I can imagine. And there's a great lesson when we get to the other part, the redemption part. We're getting there. There are great lessons in all of that. So, back to that fourth day, you are, and I interrupted you because I just had this visceral reaction to, I honestly do not know how you got through that. But on that day, you decided to be a rock. Tell me what that being a rock looks like and what you decided and what that was.

Well, I can tell you one thing that without our faith, this wouldn't have happened. There's no way. Couples who lose a child, one in four get divorced and very quickly because of the trauma and everything else. We just sat down on the floor again and realized that there has to be something that we can do to bring these kids out of isolation to be able to have a place that they can go on the weekends when they're being isolated from the rest of the world to have fun, to just go be who they are.

Whether that's sitting there for three months, which we had one gentleman do. It started from there and we thought about somewhere fun like Dave and Busters, where you can go and just play games, just be. No therapy, absolutely none. Somewhere where there are no parents. Oh really? Oh yeah. Because as parents and those people who are listening and you're a parent of an autistic child or a child with special needs, whereas they're growing up, you continue to try and

help them. And part of that helping is correction. And that's what I'm trying to do. And I'm trying to do it. And I'm trying to do it. And I'm trying to do it. And I'm trying to do it. And I'm trying to do it.

And I'm trying to do it. And I'm trying to do it. And I'm trying to do it. And I'm trying to do it. And I'm trying to do it. And I'm trying to do it. And I'm trying to do it. And I'm trying to do it. And I'm trying to do it. And I'm trying to do it. And I'm trying to do it. And I'm trying to do it. or a child with special needs, whereas they're growing up, you continue to try and help them.

And part of that helping is correction. And we didn't want this to have anything to do with that. It's just a place where they can come, hang out, no parents, nobody correcting them. And be quote normal. Yeah, and be quote normal. Yeah, absolutely. Normal kids. Yeah. And, and one of the lessons that we learned in that is, you know, as a

parent, you take your kids to all these things, PT, OT, social skills, groups, you name it, whatever. social skills groups, you name it, whatever. In the last eight years, nine years, we've learned that, and this is my analogy so nobody throw rocks at me, but anyway, I call our members our square pegs and you know it's like you take your kids to all this type of therapy trying to take a square peg and fit it in a round hole to make them normal so that they can be out in the world with what we call normal or neurotypical individuals. When really all they've ever needed this whole time is to be with each other.

They don't care about their quirks. They don't care. We have 32 kids with one staff member, well, two staff members now and eight volunteers. They can flit around the room. They can do whatever they want and nobody cares. And they have a ball. And if they don't look somebody in the eyes, well hell, everybody there understands why. Yep.

It's okay. It's okay. I get you. Yep. Yeah, absolutely. So we decided to create a 501C3. We didn't know what that would look like. And we came up with the title Aaron's Hope for Friends because she always hoped for a good friend. And as my husband has said, if Aaron had had one good friend, she'd probably still be here. And so you called it Aaron's Hope for Friends Foundation so that her memory at least and her legacy would be that people like her would have that one friend. Yes.

Or more. Or more. And date. And go to prom. We'll be right back. And the dream season is now complete. The Golden State Warriors are the 2015 NBA champions. On the new limited podcast series, Dub Dynasty, it's been 10 years since their shocking run to a championship.

We examine the controversial move that made it possible. It's never a great conversation as a player when you hear that you're being benched. For the entire behind the scenes story of Golden State's incredible 10 year run, listen to Dub Dynasty on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Are we ready to fight? I'm ready to fight. And you ready to fight? Is that what I thought it was? Oh, this is fighting words. Get your podcast.

We ready to fight? I'm ready to fight. Is that what I thought? Oh, this is fighting words. OK, I'll put the hammer back. Hi, I'm George M. Johnson, a bestselling author with the second most banned book in America. Now more than ever, we need to use our voices to fight back. And that's what we're doing on Fighting Words.

We're not going to let anyone silence us. That's the reason why they're banning books like yours, George. That's the reason why they're trying to stop the teaching of Black history or queer history, any history that challenges the whitewash norm. Or put us in a box. Black people have never, ever, depended on the so-called mainstream to support us. That's why we are great. We are the greatest culture makers in world history.

Listen to Fighting Words on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Michael Kassin, founder and CEO of 3C Ventures and your guide on Good Company, the podcast where I sit down with the boldest innovators shaping what's next. In this episode, I'm joined by Anjali Sood, CEO of Tubi, for a conversation that's anything but ordinary. We dive into the competitive world of streaming, how she's turning so-called niche into mainstream gold, connecting audiences with stories that truly make them feel seen.

What others dismiss as niche, we embrace as core. It's this idea that there are so many stories out there, and if you can find a way to curate and help the right person discover the right content, the term that we always hear from our audience is that they feel seen. Get a front row seat to where media, marketing, technology, entertainment, and sports collide. And hear how leaders like Anjali are carving out space and shaking things up a bit in the most crowded of markets.

Listen to Good Company on the iHeart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I always had to be so good no one could ignore me, carve my path with data and drive. But some people only see who I am on paper. The paper ceiling. The limitations from degree screens to stereotypes that are holding back over 70 million stars. Workers skilled through alternative routes rather than a bachelor's degree. It's time for skills to speak for themselves. Find resources for breaking through barriers at tearthepaperceiling.org, brought to you by Opportunity at Work and the Ad Council. Have you ever wondered if your pet is lying to you? Why is my cat not here?

And I go in and she's eating my lunch. Or if hypnotism is real? You will use this suggestion in order to enhance your cognitive control. What's inside a black hole? Black holes could be a consequence of the way that we understand the universe. Well, we have answers for you in the new iHeart original podcast, Science Stuff. Join me, Jorge Cham, as we tackle questions you've always wanted to know the answer to about animals, space, our brains, and our bodies.

Questions like, can you survive being cryogenically frozen? This is experimental. This means never work for you. What's a quantum computer? It's not just a faster computer. It performs in a fundamentally different way. Do you really have to wait 30 minutes after eating before you can go swimming? It's not really a safety issue. It's more of a comfort issue.

We'll talk to experts, break it down, and give you easy to understand explanations to fascinating scientific questions. So give yourself permission to be a science geek and listen to science stuff on the iHeart Video app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The mission is to create lasting relationships through joyful interaction. So it's to allow these teens and now young adults, we are now moving into adults. We're also potentially looking at some point maybe doing younger kids, but we just wanted

that place where they could come together and they could feel safe and they could hang out with each other. So we created E's Club, E' S Club. That's what the names of the clubs are. And it is like a mini Dave and Busters. You walk in, it has ping pong, air hockey, pool table, ski ball, video gaming, an art section. Is this a place? So you raise money. Oh, yeah definitely Yeah, so you went out it so you actually built Ease Club is actually not a group of people. It is a physical place

so tell me about So the first year we we started the 501c3, we had our first fundraiser. She passed away in January. We had our first fundraiser June 28th because that was her birthday. And so we said it was her birthday party. And we, gosh, I'm trying to remember how much money we raised. I mean, at that point in time, which was 2015, it roughly cost us about 70 to $80,000 to open the physical space.

So it is an actual physical open space with everything that I just talked about and more. And then we just continued every year with, as we do now, with a big fundraiser, a gala, which we just had. And we do other fundraisers throughout the year and grants and everything else. Our goal was to be in every state in the United States by 2025, but unfortunately, COVID- Slowed that out. Oh, well, it slowed it down. It like squashed it a little bit. But this exists in Georgia.

Yes, it exists. So the first club was in Alpharetta, Georgia. Then we opened the second club in Atworth, Georgia. So we had two clubs and we had four other states that we were in contact with that they were interested individuals who wanted to open Ease Club in those other four states. And then COVID came and we couldn't meet in person any longer. So we ended up, we do not own these properties, we lease them. The build out and everything that's in it, well, the first one was very grassroots, as you can imagine. But we try to get everything donated, even the build outs, as much as we can, so we can use the

monies that we raise for programming. And we ended up having to close both of those because we couldn't meet in person. But before COVID, you went from 26 kids to two years later, 370 kids? Up to this point, we've helped 1,500 children, teens, young adults. We have both. I wanna share three quotes, which speaks to the 1,500 people you've helped. A dad about a son, he doesn't feel pressure,

he's not afraid to say something that someone is gonna make fun of him for. Another dad, my daughter always said, I just wish other kids were like me. Now she has that. She's surrounded by other kids like her. It means the world to her. She wouldn't miss it for anything in the world.

A kid, a teen, I feel a little bit more open here than I am at school. It's easier to interact with people who are similar to me than to force being normal around others. I'm just glad I can hang out with other people on the spectrum, understand me better than all the kids at my school do. Yep. That's it, right? That's it in a nutshell. Yeah.

At our gala, we had a young adult. She got up and spoke about her experience in the young adult program. It's not just when I talked before about those ahas and those lessons that we've learned. This isn't just about Ease Club because when we had to shut those doors, within a month we went virtual. We still have virtual today and we have teens and young adults from around the country and Canada who are part of the virtual program now, which we're not going to get away. That's not going to go away now that we're back in person. But at the event, this young lady talked and her dad came up to me afterwards with just tears

rolling down his face. And he came up to me and he hugged me and he says, you don't know how much you've helped me, and you've helped my family. And that makes it. That's it. That's everything. And it's not just the 1500, it's a respite for the parents. The parents can drop their kids off and have three hours to themselves to go to dinner, to go to a movie, to just sit, to spend time with the other kids who, like my family, I had a neurotypical daughter and I had Erin who was on the spectrum. What it would have been like for Erin to be able to go and hang out and make friends with other kids and we could spend time with Rachel by herself. The other lesson is that we use National Charity League and Young Men's Service League for

our volunteer base. Not solely, but they are the largest majority. And it's moms and daughters and moms and sons. And when they walk in the door, you think about, you were asking about, you know, level one to level three, and they hear, oh, I'm going to a club to work with autistic teens and young adults. Well, most people, the first place they go is three. So you know, they're thinking, well, are they going to

be nonverbal? Like, how do I talk to them? You know, are they going to get upset? What are they going to do? And they come in like deer in the headlights. They have to be there 30 minutes prior and we just kind of tell them, you know, we just want you to engage everybody. If you see somebody sitting by themselves, ask them if they want to play pool or whatever. By the time they leave, they come up to us and they're like, oh my gosh, this is the most fun I've ever had. Do you know Antonio? He is hysterical. You know, I mean, they just, they have a blast and it's, so it's become an educational experience for those folks who come in as volunteers because now they see our kids in a different way. You mean for the normal folks that were just like you before you had an autistic kid?

Yes. But they walk away with an appreciation of who these kids are. So you got the virtual and you've reopened. Where is this thing now? Where are we now? Right now we opened our club in Woodstock, Georgia. So we have an East Club in Woodstock, Georgia. In November 11th, we'll be opening our first charter in Lexington, Kentucky. That's where Aaron was born. So it's really that special. But the, you know, our goal right now is to have 10 clubs open by 2026. And you have two. We have two. And a virtual. And virtual. How many people are served by virtual and how many will be served by these two clubs? About. About. Well, you can have... So, virtual is once a week. Teens are

Friday and Saturday nights. Young adults right now are Sunday nights. Eventually, we will fill out the programming through the week with other things. There are so many needs now that we've realized for all of them, adults and teens, that even how to ask somebody out on a date. How to- I love that. Oh, yeah. No, we've had kids go to prom together. I mean, it's just I can't, the stories I could that. Oh, yeah. No, we've had kids go to prom together.

I mean, it's just, I can't, the stories I could tell. Well, tell them. They're just, I mean, it's just so great. Antonio, who was funny, we had a 16-year-old girl who would come and volunteer, and she went to high school with Antonio. And the one thing that just melted my heart is she said when I see Antonio in the hallway, I always stop and talk to him. He's the funniest guy I've ever met.

Well let me tell you, there aren't a lot of neurotypical kids who are going to stop in the hallway in high school out of 2,500 kids in a public high school and talk to a kid on the spectrum. But the reason she did that was because she came and she saw, and she saw how real and fun and bright. I mean, one of the kids that we had, he was ranked 181st in chess in the United States. Wow. And my husband tried to play him multiple times. It didn't work.

He got smoked. He got smoked. We'll be right back. And the dream season is now complete. The Golden State Warriors are the 2015 NBA champions. On the new limited podcast series Dub Dynasty, it's been 10 years since their shocking run to a championship. We examine the controversial move that made it possible. It's never a great conversation as a player when you hear that you're being benched.

For the entire behind the scenes story of Golden State's incredible 10 year run, listen to Dub Dynasty on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Michael Kassin, founder and CEO of 3C Ventures and your guide on Good Company. The podcast where I sit down with the boldest innovators shaping what's next. In this episode, I'm joined by Anjali Sood, CEO of Tubi, for a conversation that's anything but ordinary. We dive into the competitive world of streaming,

how she's turning so-called niche into mainstream gold, connecting audiences with stories that truly make them feel seen. What others dismiss as niche, we embrace as core. It's this idea that there are so many stories out there and if you can find a way to curate and help the right person discover the right content, the term that we always hear from our audience

is that they feel seen. Get a front row seat to where media, marketing, technology, entertainment, and sports collide. And hear how leaders like Anjali are carving out space and shaking things up a bit in the most crowded of markets. Listen to Good Company on the iHeart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. We ready to fight?

I'm ready to fight? I'm ready to fight. As you were fighting. Is that what I thought it was? Oh, this is fighting words. Okay. I'll put the hammer back. Hi, I'm George M. Johnson, a bestselling author with the second most banned book in America.

Now, more than ever, we need to use our voices to fight back. And that's what we're doing on Fighting Words. We're not going to let anyone silence us. That's the reason why they're banning books like yours, George. That's the reason why they're trying to stop the teaching of black history or queer history, any history that challenges the whitewash norm. Or put us in a box. Black people have never, ever, depended on the so-called mainstream to support us. That's why we are great.

We are the greatest culture makers in world history. Listen to Fighting Words on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. I always had to be so good no one could ignore me. Carve my path with data and drive. But some people only see who I am on paper. The paper ceiling. The limitations from degree screens to stereotypes that are holding back over 70 million stars. Workers skilled through alternative routes, rather than a bachelor's degree.

It's time for skills to speak for themselves. Find resources for breaking through barriers at tearthepapersealing.org, brought to you by Opportunity at Work and the Ad Council. Have you ever wondered if your pet is lying to you? Why is my cat not here? Can I go in and she's eating my lunch? Or if hypnotism is real? What you would use as a suggestion in order to enhance your cognitive

control. What's inside a black hole? Black holes could be a consequence of the way that we understand the universe. Well we have answers for you in the new iHeart original podcast, Science Stuff. Join me, Jorge Cham, as we tackle questions you've always wanted to know the answer to about animals, space, our brains, and our bodies. Questions like, can you survive being cryogenically frozen? This is experimental. This means never work for you. What's a quantum computer? It's not just a faster computer.

It performs in a fundamentally different way. Do you really have to wait 30 minutes after eating before you can go swimming? It's not really a safety issue. It's more of a comfort issue. We'll talk to experts, break it down, and give you easy to understand explanations to fascinating scientific questions.

So give yourself permission to be a science geek and listen to Science Stuff on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. We returned when I asked Stacey about how many folks come to East clubs. Well, I mean, it depends on their programming. So if you have 64, you can have 32 kids per night. So that's 64 on a weekend. That's just for teens. That doesn't include young adults. And we're open 48 weeks out of the year. Don't ask me to do that math. I won't, but virtual?

Virtual right now, roughly about 20 per night. And don't forget that the parents are being served. When I've met parents, they've come up to me and told me about their children being suicidal and or attempting to take their life. And now as a result of this? They're still here. No, and as a result of this, that it's helped because they've found a place that's safe. They found a place that they can go, be themselves to the quotes that you stated,

and not have to worry about being bullied or made fun of. And everyone accepts each other. And that force that square peg in a round hole. Really, all the square pegs just need to come together and have fun. And these kids end up calling each other outside of the club, they end up meeting each other and doing things. talks about the kidstalks about the. Oh, you mean doing what kids do.

Yeah, exactly. Because they have a safe place to do it. Yeah, but they meet each other in that safe place and then it grows from there. The friendship grows, which is our mission, and that it can be a lasting friendship. We just had two people who met on virtual and forgive me, I don't remember where everybody lives. Oh, the one in Canada and another one in Pennsylvania, I think. The parents got together and the one was going on vacation and the parents brought them together so they could meet in person. And they got to hang

out. How cool is that? That is very cool. I can't quit thinking what Darren said, that if Erin had one of these interactions, she'd be with you today and you are literally saving lives in Erin's memory, which in the coolest sense is probably her legacy. Mm-hmm. I hope so. We hope so. That's phenomenal. We want this to be on the same level as the Boys and Girls Club. We want that legacy because of all these kids in the United States, all these young adults, adults, I mean there's so many needs that we can continue to you know talk about beyond

what we've already found, which we're gonna work on, but this can be a space that's open seven days a week for all different types of things to help all these individuals feel complete. Feel whole, safe, yes, and productive. So you said earlier, by 2026, you plan on having 10 earlier, by 2026, you plan on having 10 E-clubs? E-clubs, yeah. Right? E-clubs, yes. And you want to go, you want to be as big as the Boys and Girls Club?

That's our goal. That would be one in every city. Yes. So how do you get there? That's a good question. Who's out there that can help me? That's what I want to know. Which is? That's a good question. Who's out there that can help me?

That's what I want to know. That's a good question. Which is exactly what you emailed me, which was, now I can tell everybody, you owe me, hey, this is what, it was so quick and to the point. I love an Army of Normal folks. I love what you're sharing. I to the point. I love an army of normal folks. I love what you're sharing. I love the stories. My daughter had autism and took her life. And this is what we've done because of that. You sent me a link and we just want to get the word out to create

more of these places for kids all over the country. That's what you said to me in your email. I don't know if you remember, but I read it today. What do you need? It sounds like you need people. It sounds like you need families that are struggling with the same things you guys were struggling with with a child with autism. And you need them to call you and learn how it's done and get involved. Absolutely. It'll roughly to get to 10 by 10, 10 by 2026. I mean, it's probably about

two and a half million dollars. It takes us roughly about a hundred to a hundred and fifty thousand dollars to run a club for a year. and that's including staff. So it's daunting, but we'll do it. You know what? It's a lot, but it's actually not a lot. I mean, it's a lot of money. But with all of the riches available to people in this world looking for good quality things to do that actually do change and save lives. I've got to believe there's people hearing this right now that are like, oh yeah, I want to do that. Or I have an autism person in my family or I know somebody that does. And what an amazing mission that you and I mean, you're still working, right? You got

a life. Oh yeah. Still working. Still working and doing your thing. So the other part, this is beyond the 10,000, exactly what you said was think of all of the families and all of the Rachels who are being positively affected by this too. I mean, this thing just has tentacles that are far reaching to every community that it's in. Dr. Luzarosa Oh, absolutely. I mean, just the families, just like the dad who came up to me two weeks ago in tears. You know, it's helped them because it's helped their child. Therefore, it helped

the family. I mean, it is a trickle effect. Well, I think also maybe it can serve to be a conduit to further education to people who don't deal with autism in their family or their jobs to just understand that this is a very real thing and it's not trivial and it shouldn't be made fun of. And as parents, we have a responsibility to teach our children better. Absolutely. We do. I agree. And that's why I love that we bring the volunteer base in who gets that education in person.

And gets to see these kids and how funny and smart and, I mean, it's just, there's, there's so, like you said, I love the octopus and the tentacles because that's, we, we created the head of the octopus and the tentacles are just coming out and the things that we're learning and the things that we can do through Aaron's Hope and through Ease Club and the number of people that we can reach not only the autistic kids but beyond is it's unlimited because we learn something new every day. Aaron's hope for friends foundation. Anybody who's listening that wants to be involved or who is struck by this and says this is something I want to do and can do. Who do

they call? How do they do it? They can call me. How does that work? Do they call you, email you? How do you give us? They can call me at 678-739-9999. They can email me at staceyhorst at kw.com, s-t-a-c-y-h-o-r-s-t at kw.com. You can reach out to our website, is Aaron's Hope for Friends dot org. There's a contact page you can fill that out. You can also send an email to info at Aaron's Hope for Friends dot org. If there's ever a calling for an army of normal folks to get involved, this is it because

that's what's going to fix it. The government's not going to fix it. Talking that's what's going to fix it. The government's not going to fix it, talking about it's not going to fix it, nothing's going to fix it, but just somebody like you and Darren who said, our children deserve better and you're a rock and I am just beyond amazed by how you've taken the most traumatic thing that could have ever happened to you in your life and turned it into a positive in honor of your daughter so that her legacy lives on in a purposeful way. It is a phenomenal story of sadness and depth and redemption and hope. And, you know, nobody tabbed you and said, go do this.

Nobody gave you a foundation and so go do it. You're just a normal mom and a normal wife raising two kids, the best you know how, who very personally felt and saw a need as a result of some great sadness and decided to fill it and you're saving and changing lives and helping families as a result of it and I am beyond honored to have talked to you about it and thank you so much for sharing in depth the very personal side of your story so that people can really understand the importance of what you're doing. So first one I've teared up in, and I've heard some stories. And thank you for being the very first of our organic guests.

So you will be deep in the history of an army of normal folks forever. Thank you so much for coming to Memphis and sharing your story with us and all the amazing work you're doing, Stacey. Well, thank you so much for having me and what you're doing with the podcast because it's amazing.

Thanks very much. And thank you for joining us this week. If Stacey or another Gus has inspired you in general, or better yet to take action by starting an Ease Club or by donating to Aaron's Hope for Friends, or something else entirely, please let me know. I'd love to hear about it. You can write me anytime at Bill at NormalFolks.us and I will respond. You know, a special note after this episode, if you heard what you've just heard and aren't inspired to talk about any kids in your family, grandchildren, nephews, nieces, and certainly your kids, this story should certainly awaken us to the

the desperation felt by some due to bullying and exclusion. We have a responsibility, y'all. We have a responsibility to raise our kids with an empathetic heart and an understanding about the dangers of bullying and the importance of inclusion. I hope you'll think about Erin next time you see your own children

and pray that they never have to go through what she went through and also take action to teach and foster a level of empathy and understanding and love in our kids' hearts. And I hope this story motivates you to at the very least do that. If you enjoyed this episode, share it with friends and on socials, subscribe to the podcast, rate it, review it, become a premium member at normalfolks.us to all these things that will help us grow an army of normal folks. For our premium members, we'll have bonus content from this episode.

And it's actually the hilarious story about how Stacy and her husband Darren met. And if you don't want to miss it, become a premium member today. Lastly, I want to thank our sponsor at Iron Light Labs. I'm Bill Courtney. I'll see you next week. Hi, I'm Sam Ahlens, and I've got a new podcast coming out called Go Boy, the gritty true story of how one man fought his way out of some of the darkest places imaginable. Roger Caron was 16 when first convicted. I spent 24 of those years in jail. But when Roger Caron picked up a pen and paper, he went from an ex-con to a literary darling. From Campside Media and iHeart Podcasts, listen to Go Boy on the iHeart Radio app, Apple podcasts,

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