Hopebridge Celebrates 15 Years of Autism Services in 2020

The Autism Therapy Network has Helped Thousands of Children Achieve Independence

The autism community did not always have the support that it has today, but 15 years ago, Hopebridge Founder and Chief Clinical Officer Kim Strunk sought out to change that. All because of one woman’s motivation for change, what started as one small center in Kokomo, Indiana has now grown into one of the largest autism therapy networks in the nation.

Serving as an occupational therapist in 2005, Kim often worked with children who displayed signs and symptoms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), yet most of them were undiagnosed. At the time, it was not uncommon for diagnostic testing to wait until a few years into school, usually after social and behavioral challenges within the classroom. Kim knew these children and families deserved more.

“While watching parents rush from place to place for treatment, I became very moved and humbled by their challenges and how it impacted their children’s development and response to therapy,” said Kim. “I knew there must be a better, more intensive way to provide the care and learning tools they needed to succeed. My mission was to simplify the process for families.”

Therapy and play go hand in hand at Hopebridge Autism Therapy Centers.

After much research, Kim opened Homefront Learning Center, now known as Hopebridge Autism Therapy Centers. She designed the Hopebridge360^TM model, a multidisciplinary approach rooted in the evidence based applied behavior analysis (ABA therapy), along with complementary services like occupational, speech and feeding therapy. At the time, it didn’t fit the traditional framework of autism therapy, nor did insurance companies recognize ABA programs, which made the services cost prohibitive for some. With help from her team, Kim’s determination and ongoing effort provided new opportunities for this underserved population.

Fast-forward to today and there are 47 Hopebridge Autism Therapy Centers across Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Georgia and Arizona, with plans to bring care closer to home for even more communities around the country in 2020.

Thousands of children and their parents have experienced newfound pleasures in life thanks to the skills they built at Hopebridge over the years. Diagnostic services and ABA therapy are currently much more accessible to families nationwide, though Hopebridge still remains at the forefront of the industry through its one-on-one, individualized therapy and support services for kids with autism and their parents.

To celebrate our 15th anniversary, we will take this year to share the inspiring stories of some of the incredible kiddos, families and team members who are the heart and soul of Hopebridge. Look out for a new story on the 15th of each month to learn more about how Hopebridge’s center-based ABA, outpatient therapies, parent training, insurance support and more have helped change the lives of so many and brought us to where we are today.

Want to make your own story alongside ours? Let us help your child lead his or her best life by connecting with us here. In addition to following our anniversary story each month, you can also stay up to date on our growth on our centers page to find the best location for your family.