The Winters Bros. team is lucky to have such a hard working and dedicated employee.

Harrison is a shining example of the mission of Winters Center for Autism in action. We wish you the best Harrison!

#winterscenterforautism
#hireforahigherpurpose
​#WorkingWednesday

In support of National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM) employees of Home Depot in Coram, donated their time and materials to further enhance the Horticulture Program at Winters Center for Autism. 

"We are incredibly thankful for Howard Hafkin, Coram Store Manager of Home Depot, along with his colleagues who selected Winters Center for Autism to receive three raised vegetable planting beds along with supplies. They also were generous enough to provide our Center with beautiful mums to help decorate the building." Christine Ponzio, Executive Director, Winters Center for Autism.

Program participants were delighted to learn how to build and install raised garden beds. One participant shared, "hammering the wooden boards to build the garden beds was my favorite part of the whole process."

Adrian, an intern at the Center was so grateful seeing a smile on each person's face throughout the entire workshop. 

"Thank you to Howard and his team for this amazing opportunity that afforded participants to work together to assemble the beds and learn more about what it takes to maintain a healthy vegetable garden." Lisa Lee, Community Resource Coordinator, Winters Center for Autism.

 1 in 44 children are diagnosed with autism. The unemployment rate for individuals with autism exceeds 85%. The Winters Center for Autism provides job services including job training, career planning, interview preparation, exploration of volunteer and educational opportunities, and employer assistance to develop easy to implement employment programs for people with autism.  Jobs can give people a sense of fulfillment and purpose.  Identifying businesses in Long Island community who want to be a part of making a difference is the key to changing the landscape of unemployment for adults with autism. 

Howard Hafkin, Coram store Manager at Home Depot, who has a nephew with autism, shared: " To be able to come and contribute  means something so personal to me, this was truly an outstanding experience. "
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#winterscenterforautism #hireforahigherpurpose

The Town of Babylon held a street renaming and dedication ceremony in honor of Joe Winters for his devotion to the autism community. Mahan street is now “Joe Winters Way”. A tribute to a man of honor and integrity who chose West Babylon as his place of business. Adding to the celebration of this special day, June 15, 2022, was designated as the Joe and Michele Winters Day in the Town of Babylon and Suffolk County by Suffolk County Executive Steven Bellone.

Thank you to the 200+ guests that gathered together on June 15, 2022, to celebrate the opening of the new state-of-the-art Winters Center for Autism campus that is committed to job training, wellness, and employment opportunities.

This day would not have come to fruition if it was not for the support and generosity of the Winters family, sponsors, volunteers and the outpouring of caring businesses that shared Joe Winters vision to “Hire for a Higher Purpose.”
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We want to extend the most heartfelt thank you to all who supported this effort and helped in fulfilling Joe's mission.
Suffolk County Executive Steven Bellone
Senator Mario R. Mattera
Senator Phil Boyle
Smithtown Supervisor Ed Wehrheim
Kevin McCaffrey
Rich Schaffer
Councilwoman Lisa Inzerillo
Vincent Puleo
#Winterscenterforautism #hireforahigherpurpose #autismadvocacy

We invite you to enjoy the livestream recording and photos of the event below.

It has been an incredible experience working with these fine young men from the East Islip CORE Work-based Learning Program.

After one year of work experience these young men are ready to move on and spread their wings! We can’t wait to see all that they accomplish in the future.
#hireforahigherpurpose #winterscenterforautism

Big thank you to Brendan Fleming of Mickey's Ice Cream Kitchen for planning such a wonderful event where the proceeds were donated to directly benefit the Winters Center for Autism.

We had such a great time with family, friends, and good ice cream. All proceeds raised from the night will help fulfill our mission to improve the quality of life and future of adults with Autism. 

We are so appreciative of Brendan for thinking of our organization and for the community connection as we look forward to planning more events together in the future.

Thank you all who came out to support us!

​#winterscenterforautism #fundraiser #mickeysicecream

​Jeffrey is an extraordinarily talented, award-winning musician and a well-educated young man, who teaches and mentors students and adults with disabilities during his down time.  

We invite you to view this video of Jeffrey, as he describes his journey with Winters Center for Autism and the impact the experience has had on his life. 

Please enjoy this video of Nicole receiving her first paycheck as an employee of Winters Bros. Waste Systems along with her story of how she got where she is today..

In May of 2021, Nicole began her WCFA Work Experience Training at Winters Bros. Waste Systems along with her journey towards meaningful employment full of excitement, energy and pure happiness.

Instantly, everyone at Winters Bros. met Nicole with a warm welcome. Those warm welcomes quickly led to formidable coworker relationships and lasting friendships.

On any given Tuesday or Thursday, you can find Nicole deeply engaged in a variety of tasks. Nicole efficiently files, prepares invoices for mailing, fills copiers and printers, waters plants, and cleans and sanitizes the break room.
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Nicole’s positivity and happiness is apparent whenever anyone is in her presence. It has been evident since the start that this was a perfect work place for Nicole. So you can imagine in January, when she was offered a paid position at Winters Bros, she was filled with joy. Her reaction and what happened next is indescribable, we thought we would let this video explain it all. Enjoy every second, as we sure did!
#winterscenterforautism #hireforahigherpurpose

​In recognition of his advocacy on behalf of those with Autism and philanthropy to related charitable causes, RVC Blue Speaks, the largest Long Island-based autism charity, will honor the legacy of entrepreneur Joe Winters, former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Winters Bros. Waste Systems, a leading provider of recycling and solid waste services on Long Island. Mr. Winters’ wife, Michele, will accept the legacy award in his honor. Mr. Winters founded the Winters Center for Autism, a vocational training and job placement program for people with autism.
 
Since its inception in 2017, RVC Blue Speaks has raised over $300,000 for autism support and awareness. Their fourth annual gala (the last event was 2019), will be held on Saturday, April 23, 2022, at the Coral House in Baldwin, NY. Mr. Butch Yamali, President and CEO of the Dover Group, and the 2019 RVC Blue Speaks gala honoree, has once again donated the cost of the event.
 
“On behalf of the RVC Blue Speaks Board of Directors, we are very grateful to Winters Bros. and Mr. Winters’ family and are pleased to recognize them for their tireless advocacy in support of a wonderful cause, one we all hold dear to our hearts,” said Anthony Cancellieri, Co-Chair of the Board of Directors. “Over the past four years, Rockville Centre and the surrounding communities have generously opened their hearts and wallets to support families affected by autism. We are grateful for their continued support.”
 
Anthony and Mary Lou Cancellieri of Rockville Centre, NY, founded RVC Blue Speaks in 2016 when their grandson Louis was diagnosed on the autism spectrum at age 2. The group’s mission is to promote awareness and acceptance of those affected by Autism Spectrum Disorder so that their quality of life is enhanced and their potential is fulfilled and to raise funding for genetic research, support programs, and community initiatives that directly serve families in need on Long Island and; to change the conversation about autism into action and progress. To date, the group has donated thousands to support those with autism through grants and scholarship programs. They have generously given to the Seaver Autism Center for Research and Treatment at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and the Hagedorn Little Village School in Seaford. They partnered with Mount Sinai South Nassau to fund “Louie,” a Vecta machine that provides a calming atmosphere for people with autism spectrum disorder in the stressful and often unknown environment of an emergency room or hospital.
 
It also awarded thousands in scholarships to high school students entering the Bridges to Adelphi program at Adelphi University. The program at Adelphi allows students on the autism spectrum to more easily transition into university life and then, upon graduation, the workforce. Locally, the group has begun implementing plans to partner with the Village of Rockville Centre on a village-wide “light it up blue” awareness campaign for the month of April.  
 
Today, Winters Bros. is the largest recycling and solid waste company on Long Island serving residential, commercial, industrial and municipal customers. The Winters Center for Autism, a not for profit affiliated with the Winters Family Foundation, was launched in 2020. The Center is committed to enhancing and improving the quality of life for adults with autism through job creation, training and placement while helping Long Island employers develop and implement programs for capable and trained employees.
 
“The Winters Family and Winters Bros. Waste Systems are committed to support organizations that work to aid people with autism so they're able to enhance their quality of life,” said Mrs. Winters. “Joe was tremendously impressed with the work of RVC Blue Speaks. I am deeply touched to accept this award in honor of my husband’s legacy.”
 
For more information about RVC Blue Speaks or to reserve your ticket for the upcoming gala, please visit www.rvcbluespeaks.org or on Facebook @RVCBlueSpeaks.