Every person has something meaningful to contribute. That is the message of BiG North Florida, a vocational enrichment community serving adults with unique abilities.
Tim and Lynn Yeager started Bridge Haven Academy in 2016 after seeing a need in their community for a place with students with unique abilities. The Yeagers have a son named Jacob who is the inspiration behind their mission. Jacob has autism and is a non-speaker. When he was 12 years old, he started to type on an iPad to communicate.
“We started the school when our son started typing to communicate. Until that moment, we really did not have a reliable communication system for him, so this method was a game changer. There were no schools that could support his only method of communication, so we started a school, educated our students on grade level following St. Johns County standards and objectives for learning, and our students thrived,” said Lynn Yeager.
Once a student with unique abilities turns 22, a lot of the educational services and support stop because of their age. Lynn Yeager started searching for a place for Jacob, and that’s when she found Brookwood in Georgetown (BiG) located in Austin, Texas. She went to Texas and spent some time at BiG learning about their program.
In 2022, BIG started a replication program. Their goal was to have a BiG organization in all 50 states. The BiG North Florida campus opened in July of this year in Ponte Vedra Beach. Their building sits on 2½ acres of land and features six enterprise rooms, an industrial sized kitchen, a multipurpose space and an outdoor area for exercise.
“We are truly proud to represent BiG and their mission here in the state of Florida,” said BiG North Florida employee Marcus Sowcik.
At BiG North Florida, students are known as citizens, a word that reflects the organization’s philosophy. These adults are not simply recipients of services. They are artists, bakers, gardeners, entrepreneurs, jewelry makers, communicators, friends and valued members of their community.
Citizens in the BiG program start their day at 9 a.m. and spend a big part of it working on a different enterprise. These enterprises include making soaps, candles, wax melts, bracelets, dog treats and more. They take part in every step of the process including the setup, labeling of the products, choosing different scents for candles and cutting dog treats.
Citizens and staff members of BiG North Florida will often feature their products at different farmers markets around the community. Since they are a nonprofit organization, they simply ask community members to make donations for these products. These donations go right back into the ministry of BiG North Florida.
Citizens from BiG North Florida will showcase their products at the Palm Valley Community Center farmers market on Oct. 13 and at the Beach Walk farmers market on Oct. 17.
BiG North Florida believes that every individual has the ability to learn, communicate, grow, make choices and contribute. Instead of placing a ceiling on potential, BiG North Florida creates an environment in which that potential has room to grow.
“It’s our job to meet our citizens where they are at every single day and provide the right support so that they can be successful,” said Sowcik.
