New Special Needs Center to Open in Wilton

Connec-to-Talk, a privately owned behavioral, speech, and occupational therapy practice for children will open the doors to their new location at 59 Danbury Road in Wilton, Conn., on September 4. Renovation is nearing completion on this new 3,000-square-foot state of the art center that will provide services to children throughout Fairfield and Westchester Counties affected by autism and other developmental disabilities.

“Our goal is to provide the convenience of many therapeutic services under one roof with the added benefit of having a childcare center in the same space,” said Jennifer Basch, Connec-to-Talk’s co-founder and managing partner. The childcare center Basch is referring to is Building Blocks Early Learning Center, which opened its doors in May. “Parents, especially working parents, will enjoy the benefit of being able to have their children receive all of their needed services in one location. This is a huge added benefit for parents of children with special needs that are often pulled in many directions, driving to service providers all throughout the region,” said Nika Williams-Arbelo, Connec-to-Talk’s other co-founder and managing partner.

The new center will focus on early intervention services for children diagnosed with developmental delays and autism spectrum disorders. According to The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) autism affects 1 in 88 children. “We are seeing children diagnosed earlier and earlier. In some instances, we start working with them before they have received a formal diagnosis because we believe that you treat the child not the diagnosis,” said Williams-Arbelo. Research has found that early intervention for children on the autism spectrum can help children and their families cope with some of the issues and help the children succeed later in school and with friendships

Basch, a resident of New Canaan and Williams-Arbelo, a resident of Norwalk met while in graduate school. “We both shared a vision of opening a private practice, “said Williams-Arbelo. Their vision became a reality in 2004 when they started Connec-to-Talk, a clinic based in Wilton. “We began with a speech clinic and quickly expanded our practice to include behavior and occupational therapies. We’ve seen a lot of success with the model we’ve created” said, Basch. Connec-to-Talk is designed to provide services in a trans-disciplinary model where all service providers work together for the child. Speech, occupational, and applied behavioral analysis (ABA) therapies are provided in the center. However, services can also be coordinated with external clinics. In addition, Connec-to-Talk offers parent training, life skills training, and group therapy. “It’s truly a turn-key center,” said Basch.

In October, Basch and Williams-Arbelo will sit on an expert panel of service providers for the Fairfield County Mothers of Multiples (MoMsLFC) organization. This event will be hosted at the new clinic in Wilton. Parents will have the opportunity to seek advice and educate themselves about child development. “We are very excited to participate in this event and help educate families on various aspects of their children’s development”, said Williams-Arbelo.