We're continuing our discussion of employing individuals with disabilities this week for National Disability Employment Awareness Month. Today, we'll be talking to Jeni Smith who is one of the owners of Rosati's Pizza in Cumming, Ga. She is a former special needs educator that now works with disabled students thanks to a work study program at their restaurant. She's also getting ready to open a new business venture called Sliceability that will not only hire individuals with disabilities but also provide them with job coaches and give them the resources to grow their careers. Jeni talked to us about her experience having individuals with disabilities work at her restaurant and how she has managed to find what they enjoy and adapt it to what they could do in the workplace. 

"You should be looking at everyone that walks in the door, what their gifts and talents are and what they bring to the team." 

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Did you know that October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month? The unemployment rate for adults with disabilities is almost triple that of those without a disability in the United States. One of our missions is to encourage companies to start hiring adults with disabilities. Today, we're speaking with Patrick Bardsley, Co-Founder & CEO of Spectrum Designs. They were founded in 2011 to provide jobs for adults with autism and now some of their clients include Google, ABC, Uber and more. We talked to Patrick about why they started the company, the benefits of hiring adults with a disability and how companies can find the right employees to join their team. 

"We have some of the most loyal, dedicated, hardworking, consistent on the planet." 

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It's officially October and spooky season is in full swing! While many kids are counting down the days to trick-or-treating, for kids with autism and their parents this can be a very stressful time. Things like wearing a fun costume and going door-to-door asking for candy don't come naturally to many kids. Today, we're going to talk about how you can prepare your child for Halloween with some practice and help from your neighbors. 

"In order to make it fun, they have to see the value in it and the value might not be the same for them as it is for another child. 

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Today we're joined again by Janice Kern for part two of our conversation on building a community. We talk more about how we work with our children to encourage them to make a connection with family members, friends and schoolmates. Janice also talks about how she has used social media as a tool to create a community for her son. The key to all of these tips is that it doesn't happen quickly or easily but it makes the result so much sweeter! 

"We made it happen first. We included him in really small ways first and then it grew into something bigger." 

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Building a safe and supportive community for your child with autism can seem like a daunting task, but it's not as hard as you might think. Today we start part one of our two part conversation with our friend Janice Kern, a fellow autism mom. We discuss how finding the support of neighbors and friends starts at home with your child and preparing them for those interactions. Plus, we check in with Jordyn and Hudson to talk about Hudson's birthday plans! 

"I didn't necessarily find the community, I learned how to seek out good people." 

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Welcome to season two of the Be Kind to Everyone podcast! Once of the biggest questions we get from you is how we built such a great community for Jordyn. Creating a community is such an important topic that we want to explore that all this season. In this season premiere, we'll tell you a little on how we created our community and how we'll explore that over the next couple months. 

"You want your community, your team, your squad, you want it to be people who accept your child for who they are." 

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As we get ready for Season 2 of Be Kind to Everyone to premiere September 13th, we want to give you a little preview of what we are working on. 

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It's time for our season one finale! This week we are joined by Jeff from "The Upside with Callie and Jeff" and the man behind our podcast. We talk about the first season of the show, Jordyn's journey since starting the shirt shop, how to support your friends and neighbors whose child was diagnosed with autism, what to expect from season two and so much more! 

"I just want to make the world a friendly, more opportunity place for individuals like Jordyn." 

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This week we are going to answer your most asked questions from social media. We'll cover everything from staying hopeful during the struggles in our autism journey to how much soda Jordyn really drinks in a day! 

"I am a huge proponent of celebrating every success in life and sometimes those successes might seem so small. But it's those little successes that turn into those big ones."

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It's back-to-school season and this week we are joined by a very special guest Stephanie from Mrs. D's Corner to talk about back-to-school nerves. We discuss strategies for alleviating those first day jitters for yourself and your child, best ways to communicate with your child's teacher and, of course, the IEP! 

"You put your kid on that bus or drop them off that first day and it's scary!" 

For more from Stephanie visit https://www.mrsdscorner.com/

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