April 4, at 7 p.m. the Hampton Inn in Edinburgh filled with people with one common goal.

REACH Columbus, Inc. provides experiences and activities for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Christy Farrell among others was one of the founding mothers of the program.

“REACH Columbus, Inc. was founded by a group of moms that wanted something better for our adult children with disabilities,” Christy Farrell said. “We are guided by a Board of Directors made up of caregivers, advocates, and parents.”

Christy Farrell is the current president of the Board of Directors.

“We love getting out in the community,” Christy Farrell said. “We spend time at the parks, library, downtown Columbus, and more. We post a lot on social media letting people know what we have been up to, sharing lots of pictures, sharing different facts to raise disability awareness, and offering ways for folks to partner with us.”

REACH had an Easter Trivia Fundraiser on Friday, April 4 to raise money for their program.

“We always aim high,” Christy Farrell said. “We would love to raise $5000 but know that is a tall order and realistically it will probably be around $2000-$2500.”

They hope to use the money to expand REACH beyond the day program, PAC services and the employment program they already offer.

“Ultimately we would love to offer apartments, some assisted,” Christy Farrell said. “Some of our participants don’t have the opportunity to live on their own at this time. We would love to build a community within those apartments. Our shorter-term goal is to keep serving these adults and expand as we are able – we have a limited number of spots available at each building”

Christy Farrell helped found REACH because her son Ryan Farrell has autism.

“Ryan, my middle son, has autism and this program has helped him grow in so many ways and gives him something to look forward to twice a week,” Christy Farrell said. “There are so many things that I did not know when Ryan was younger and I want to make sure that other moms & dads are aware of all the programs and opportunities available for them.”

Junior Braeden Farrell is Christy Farrell’s youngest son.

“[REACH] is important to me because my brother has autism,” Braeden Farrell said. “It teaches him a lot of things that he doesn’t know how to do. They’ve been teaching him and just making that whole community better.”

Junior Karen Dutro participated in the Trivia Contest fundraiser.

“It is an Easter trivia night that will be a Table v. Table competition, all to benefit the REACH organization,” Dutro said.

Dutro is not directly involved in REACH but participated with family and friends to benefit the program.

“REACH is important to me because it is an organization that is based on compassion, education, and communication, which I believe are pillars of a more empathetic and connected world,” Dutro said.

Students can get involved with REACH in several ways.

“[Students can] hang out with our participants at some of our after-hours programs; schedule a time to come out and hang out during the day playing games, putting puzzles together, or just chatting with our participants,” Christy Farrell said. “[They can] help us fundraise, be great friends; when Ryan was at North his classmates were great friends to him. He loves seeing them out in the community and having them come and talk to him. Students can contact us at [email protected] to schedule times to come out. We are always looking for new ideas, new activities, and new friends.”