F.L.O.W. Recreation Gives Possibility

When local providers combine their resources and expertise, the community always wins. Turnstone’s new partnership with locally based F.L.O.W. Recreation combines the missions and services of two like-minded organizations to break down barriers for people in the community by providing recreational therapy services inside Turnstone’s facility, providing more opportunities for people to positively engage with the community, benefitting clients and staff alike.

F.L.O.W Recreation’s founder and owner, Sean Sumner, first discovered Turnstone nine years ago. Immediately, he knew his unique vision for a recreational therapy service would be a great match with Turnstone.

“When I first moved here, there used to be a walking club at Turnstone that I was familiar with. When I walked in, I immediately thought ‘it would be cool to have recreational therapy here’ so I had that seed in my head nine years ago when I was with another company. Over the years, I worked on creating relationships with people here [at Turnstone] to eventually become partners,” said Sean.

Sean’s approach to recreational therapy in his business was intentionally focused on serving people with disabilities in the community. Because of this partnership, Turnstone is able to add to the comprehensive list of services that are provided to the community at our facility, as well as provide a safe space for F.L.O.W. recreational therapy clients to try new things, decompress, and pursue their goals.

“This building is huge and has a ton of resources in one setting and a lot of times the individuals I work with are very apprehensive about trying new things or going outside of their normal routine. When we come here, it makes it a lot easier for transitions and individual comfort levels because everything is in one place. I feel like my clients are happier here which makes a huge difference for the entire session,” said F.L.O.W. Recreational Therapist, Makenzie.

Not only do clients feel comfortable trying new activities while at Turnstone, but their parents also have a sense of security knowing that they are in a facility that a lot of them have grown up in. One of F.L.O.W.’s clients has also been a client of Turnstone since she was three months old. Now, at age 12, because of this partnership she still has access to the resources Turnstone provides.

“A lot of our clients have barriers in the community. At Turnstone, there are resources and opportunities for our clients to gain more independence and explore different opportunities that help them work on their goals, their freedom of choice, and improve their overall quality of life,” said F.L.O.W. Recreational Therapist, Dominique. “Turnstone really allows for an inclusive and comforting environment for our clients to decompress and enjoy activities.”

Along with providing an inclusive environment for clients, Turnstone also provides a consistent, collaborative space for F.L.O.W’s rec therapists who don’t regularly have the opportunity to interact. This comradery among their therapists has been beneficial for everyone.

“The staff here are so welcoming and I really appreciate that. I have been happier as a therapist so my clients have also been happier because I feel that comradery here. Even though I am not a Turnstone employee, I feel that working with Turnstone has made a world of difference in having the support in doing what I do daily,” said Makenzie.

F.L.O.W.’s team of recreation therapists have become important contributors to Turnstone’s mission of empowering children and adults with disabilities. We are thankful that F.L.O.W. Recreation gives possibilities because of their collaborative vision for programming and their heart for serving people with disabilities.