First Smart Home for Disabilities and Autism Opens on Long Island

A First-of-Its-Kind Smart Home

• 🏠 This is the first smart home in the region specifically designed for individuals with different abilities and those living with autism.
• 💡 The home aims to provide independence and comfort, allowing residents to live as freely as others.

Enhancing Daily Life with Technology

• 🗣️ Features include voice-activated appliances and smart home technology like Alexa, enabling residents to control blinds and other functions.
• 🧑‍🦽 For individuals like AJ Duran, who uses an electric wheelchair, the technology makes daily activities such as cooking more independent and less difficult.
• ✅ The entire home is ADA accessible, including features like a movable kitchen sink.

Building and Operating the Home

• ⏳ The four-bedroom home in Shirley, Long Island, took 5 years to build and will house four residents.
• 🤝 The nonprofit Family Residences and Essential Enterprises (FREE) operates the home, emphasizing the growing need for inclusive living.
• 🔒 While promoting independence, the home will still provide 24-hour supervision for any necessary assistance.

Resident Experiences

• ✨ Residents like AJ Duran feel liberated by the increased independence, stating they are more self-sufficient than before.
• 📚 New resident Alyssa Slate, who has autism, is excited to move in and explore her new room, complete with a desk and bookcase.