Nico and his mother smiling together with warm golden tones

Nico has a place.

We're going to make sure every family like his does too.

A non-profit day program where severely disabled children and adults are welcomed, loved, and cared for — so their families can keep them home for life.

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Nico smiling broadly while playing an arcade game

A Place with Friends

Days full of joy, not just survival.

At Nico's Place, severely disabled children and adults aren't just supervised. They're engaged. They play. They laugh. They have friends. They have days worth being awake for.

This is what we're building — a real place, a real community — for Nico and every family like his.

He lights up a room. He deserves a life surrounded by people who love him.

Why We Exist

Most people have no idea how thin the support system is.

Here is the reality families raising severely disabled children and adults live with every day.

The "school years" aren't what you think

Under federal law, eligible students receive special education through age 21 — age 22 in some states. The school day ends at 3 p.m. It doesn't cover summers, holidays, or sick days. Traditional after-school programs will not accept a child who needs total care.

For working parents, this is a daily logistical impossibility: be at work, and be the only person qualified to care for your child every hour the school isn't open.

Then comes 21 — and "the cliff"

When a young adult with severe disabilities ages out of public education, families fall off what advocates openly call "the disability cliff." One day there is structure. The next day there is nothing.

700,000+ adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities are on waitlists for services in the U.S. Many wait years.

Families are forced into impossible choices

Quit working — and lose the income they need to care for their child for life.
Surrender custody to access services. A federal review estimated ~25,000 children entered foster care this way over a two-year period because parents were told it was the only path to care.
Accept institutional placement — often hours from home — because the alternative is no care at all.

The parents are aging too

The parents caring for severely disabled adults are themselves getting older. The lifting becomes harder. The sleepless nights take a heavier toll.

And every one of them carries the same private terror: What happens to my child when I'm gone?

What We Do

A third option — one that almost doesn't exist anywhere else.

A community-based day program where severely disabled children and adults are truly welcomed, truly cared for, and treated as the full human beings they are.

Bridge the school-day gap

Before-school, after-school, summer, holidays, and sick days — the hours that break working families.

Catch families at the cliff

Continuous care when public education ends at 21 or 22, so aging out doesn't mean losing everything.

Keep families together

No parent should have to surrender custody of their child to access care. Period.

Honor the person

Joy, dignity, connection, and choice — every day, for every individual we serve.

Sustain the caregivers

Parents who are supported can keep their children home. Parents who are abandoned cannot.

The promise behind the name

Nico has a place. We're building one for every family like his.

Our Promise

Families never pay a cent.

Nico's Place is fully funded by state programs, charitable donations, and partners like Love Your Next Job. No family will ever have to choose between caring for their child and earning a living.

Join families like ours.

Whether you're a family who needs us, a professional who wants to help, or someone moved by Nico's story — we'd love to hear from you.

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