Dear Friends of Kids On The Move,
I hope that this letter finds you and your family healthy and happy. We are so grateful for your generosity and continued contributions to Kids On The Move (KOTM), whether it is financially or as a volunteer. We have experienced a wonderful year of growth at Kids On The Move. This past year we had the privilege of providing services to 3,057 children and families. This is an 11% increase over the previous year. It is the donations and support from the entire community that enable us to expand and reach more children and families. As an organization we send our heartfelt expression of gratitude and appreciation.
Each of our five pillar programs, Autism Center, Early Head Start, Early Intervention, Preschool & Child Care, and Respite Care have seen growth within the communities we serve. Our dedicated team of therapists, teachers, coordinators, administrators, and volunteers see daily victories with individual children and families. Kids on the Move’s programs bring incredible value to the community and the children we serve in the following ways:
The Autism Center empowers families by supporting children with autism spectrum disorder from toddler to adolescence using applied behavior analysis (ABA). We were fortunate to have been able to provide services to 164 children this year. With clients needing between 6 and 30 hours of therapy a week, we worked diligently with every family to accommodate their schedules. For the first time ever this past year, we were able to fulfill all requested therapy hours in Utah County. We are grateful to everyone who participated in the inaugural KOTM Walk for Autism. The community support from local mayors, football players from both Brigham Young University and the University of Utah, Intermountain Healthcare, and other businesses helped make this event a great success.
The Early Intervention program enhances early growth and development in infants and toddlers who have developmental delays or disabilities. We serve families in the Alpine School District, which is the largest school district in Utah. As the largest program at Kids On The Move, we served 2,455 children last year equating to a 9.5% increase in demand for services. This equates to 17,505 visits last year with children and families. The KOTM Early Intervention team continues to support families with in-home services as well as virtual services, accommodating the individual circumstances of each family. We are focused on automating many of our processes to work efficiently, therefore providing more time to work directly with children and families.
The Early Head Start program promotes school readiness, cognitive, social, and emotional development for pregnant women and children under 3 who are in poverty and lower income. The KOTM center, at any given time, provides services for 40 children while 112 children and families in Utah County are receiving in-home educational services. We were able to deliver services to a total of 256 children throughout the past year.
The family-centered services provide help for parents to achieve self-sufficiency across a wide variety of domains, such as housing, stability, continued education, and financial security. Parents must be working, attending school, or enrolled in a training program. Priority is given to children with special needs. Families are added to the waitlist until an opening becomes available.
We work with families to increase family socialization and community collaboration. According to the U.S. Labor Department, the current inflation rate as of August 2022 is 8.3%. The higher inflation rates have increased stress and worry for families. Kids On The Move continues to provide bilingual mental health services and education, offering additional levels of support for families. Our staff connects with each of these families, offering a welcoming environment where every child and family can feel supported, uplifted, and encouraged.
The Preschool & Child Care Center provides a tremendous service to the community by supporting our employees and working parents who need care for their young children. This past year, we served 99 children and families. With the increased need in our community for childcare services, we are excited to announce that we are now licensed to serve 125 children. We continue to serve infants, toddlers, and two different age groups of preschoolers.
Recent feedback from parents and the community praises our outdoor nature classroom along with positive responses to the incorporation of ASQ assessments that are completed for each child.
The Respite Care program continues to offer a much-needed rest for families, giving them the opportunity to rejuvenate and reset. The enrollment continues to increase, and we were able to provide services for 83 children this past year. Services are provided in the evenings and weekends. In the future, we plan to provide more options for families.
This program is remarkable and has been funded by private donations, raised each year, for more than twenty years. We welcome over 2,500 volunteers each year, donating their time, talents, and compassion.
This work we do is genuinely a labor of love. It is a love for the children and families in our community. We hope you will join us in our efforts to continue providing these services to the community by giving generously through your time, in-kind, as well as monetary donations.
With sincere appreciation,
Rachelle Rutherford
Kids On The Move | CEO
