EAST ORANGE, NJ — Nassan’s Place, a nonprofit autism awareness organization, will be at the center of attention Sunday, Aug. 13, at center court in Madison Square Garden in New York City for the WNBA New York Liberty’s annual Autism Awareness Day game.
This year, the Liberty will be facing off against the Detroit Sparks — and both teams will be playing for a good cause.
“Nassan’s Place is having their annual WNBA Autism Awareness Day game at Madison Square Garden on Aug. 13,” Nassan’s Place Vice President Chernet Vidal said Thursday, July 27. “The game starts at 3 p.m. … Nassan’s Place is for children and families … affected by autism and we do social programs, family events, inclusion programs and a first-ever afterschool program for children with autism and many other events that we plan for children and families.”
According to Vidal and Nassan’s Place founder Nadine Wright-Arbubakrr, “There are not enough programs for children in our communities in and around the underserved areas in Essex County.” Last year, at the organization’s Community Appreciation Awards Dinner at the Chateau of Spain restaurant in downtown Newark, Wright-Arbubakrr announced the start of a collective effort to raise $5 million to buy a building to use as a multifunction base of operations, an effort that is still under way.
“That’s why Nadine Wright-Arbubakrr started Nassan’s Place,” Vidal said. “We want to buy our own building, because our children need to have their very own place. The effort is coming along very well, but we need lots of donations.”
Those interested in supporting Nassan’s Place are invited to attend the WNBA game at Madison Square Garden. To learn more about the organization or purchasing a ticket to the game, visit www.nassansplace.org.
“The fundraising drive is definitely still on,” according to Wright-Arbubakrr, who hopes to meet the Nassan’s Place fundraising goal in October 2017, the organization’s fifth anniversary.
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