OUR EVENTS
WHEN? WHERE? WHAT TIME?
One Night Out events are held one Saturday per month (typically the first Saturday of each month) at the Boston Ability Center's Natick location (10 Tech Circle). The Boston Ability Center is a state of the art pediatric wellness center that is dedicated to helping kids reach their highest level of function in every area of development. Their space is packed with toys and games for all ages and abilities as well as swings, a zipline, ball pit, rock wall, and more! Events last 3 hours from 5-8pm. Dates are subject to change, so be sure to join our mailing list to stay in the loop on all upcoming events!
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WHAT DO EVENTS LOOK LIKE?
At the start of the evening, your child will be placed on a "color team" and introduced to a high school student or adult volunteer who will be their "buddy" throughout the evening. Your child will complete a brief check-in activity to give parents and volunteers a chance to touch base. From there, they will enjoy playtime in the BAC gym along with participation in a variety of stations, including a simple cooking project, a craft, and storybook reading. Halfway through the evening, ONO hosts a picnic-style dinner. Cheese pizza, fruit, goldfish, and water are typically served. If your child cannot or will not eat these items, we ask that you please send them with a nut-free dinner/snack. Following dinner, children participate in a second round of playtime and stations. On some evenings, a child-friendly movie will be played for children who prefer a quieter activity towards the end of the night. While we encourage children to participate in all activities and take breaks from the gym periodically for safety reasons, stations are always optional. The goal is for each child to have fun while caregivers enjoy some time off!
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WHO WILL BE WATCHING MY CHILDREN?
The majority of our volunteers (who are paired with participants) are students at local high schools as well as some adults from the community. Two clinicians from The Boston Ability Center are also present at each event to oversee all activities. At times, you may also see additional staff/clinicians from the Boston Ability Center at events!
WILL MY CHILD BE A GOOD FIT FOR ONO EVENTS?
We understand that babysitting services for children with special needs can be hard to find and maintain, and our goal is to make this service available to all. That being said, safety and ensuring that each child's unique needs are met is our #1 goal! When registering for ONO, please consider the staffing information above, and know that your child will likely be paired 1:1 or 1:2 with a high-school aged volunteer. All ONO volunteers are provided with training prior to participation. If you have concerns related to the level of supervision provided given your child's needs, please reach out ahead of time! We would love to chat about ways to support your family. We are grateful to have so many wonderful volunteers and will also want to make sure that we have adequate staffing/supervision to support your child.
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CAN SIBLINGS ATTEND?
Yes! Please be sure to include all children when registering.
ARE THERE AGE LIMITS FOR PARTICIPATION?
If your child is particularly young (age 2 or under) please check with us to make sure we are able to accommodate your child. If your child is older (age 12+), please also reach out to check in. We like to make sure that all participants feel comfortable during events!
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HOW MUCH DOES ALL OF THIS COST?
Participation in monthly events is free! If your family would like to make a donation, you are welcome to do so via cash/check at the time of an event. Donations help us to purchase materials, hire staff as needed, and continue making these events accessible to all.
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DOES MY CHILD HAVE TO BE A BAC PATIENT TO ATTEND?
No! ONO events are open to all.
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HOW DO I SIGN UP?
The first step is to join our mailing list to stay in the loop regarding all upcoming events! Registration for our monthly events starts with a Family Interest Form, which will be available AT THIS LINK roughly one month prior to each event (you will receive an email if you are on our mailing list!) Filling out this form does not guarantee spots in any monthly event, but rather lets us know that you are interested! In order to accommodate varying family schedules, our interest form will be open for 24 hours, and from there spots will be given out on a lottery basis. If you do not get a spot the first time around (or subsequent times!) your family will certainly be given priority in following months. We do our best to rotate participants in an effort to accommodate families as many times as possible throughout the year. Please feel free to fill out a family interest form on any given month that you are interested in having your child attend and we will accommodate your family as often as possible. We have an ongoing wait list and spots often become available closer to the event date as plans change.
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"IT'S HARD TO GET A SPOT!"
We understand that waiting for a spot can be challenging, especially when children are SO excited to participate! We have many factors to consider when doing registration, including staffing, space available, etc. The safety of participants is our #1 priority! We will be working hard throughout the year to allow families to participate as often as possible and appreciate your patience! We are grateful to our volunteers for giving of their time to make this service possible!
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IS ONE NIGHT OUT THE SAME AS BOSTON ABILITY CENTER?
No. One Night Out is a separate, volunteer-run non-profit organization. We are lucky to partner with the Boston Ability Center for our monthly events and are grateful for BAC's many donations of space and materials! That said, please use our separate email address (onenightout@bostonabilitycenter.com) for all ONO-related communication. The Boston Ability Center's front desk team is unable to assist with ONO-related matters and all event registration is done through ONO.
