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COMING SOON: New play gym for kids with autism and all abilities opening in Woodbury

Coming this November, We Rock the Spectrum Kids Gym will debut its first Minnesota play gym in Woodbury, featuring nearly 8,000 square-feet of specially designed, sensory-safe and motivational play spaces for neurodivergent families, including children with autism and all abilities.

 

Located at 2101 Wooddale Drive in Woodbury, the new play gym is one of more than 100 We Rock the Spectrum Kids Gyms worldwide, and is focused on providing Play With A Purpose™, helping exercise and stimulate the seven senses through positive physical, emotional, and social development. These senses include sight, smell, taste, hearing, touch, the vestibular system and proprioception.

 

“It’s important to the community because there are so few spaces where families like mine can go and feel zero judgment, so I’m so excited to bring it because that’s what I want for my kids,” said Josephine Martinez, co-owner of We Rock the Spectrum-Woodbury.

 

Josephine and her husband Oliver are on a mission to connect families like theirs so they feel less alone. A mom to six sons with autism, Josephine originally left her day job doing tax, insurance, and immigration work to spend more time with her family and ensure their children were setup with needed services and therapy.

 

But after relocating to Woodbury from Atlanta and getting her family better situated, she told Oliver she was ready to work again. The pair fondly recalled time they’d spent at a We Rock the Spectrum location in Georgia, and he suggested they open one in the Twin Cities. She loved the idea of creating a welcoming space for families like hers.

 

According to Martinez, the gym will offer a variety of sensory swings, a zip slider, arts and crafts, a toddler space, a teen lounge with basketball hoops and foosball table, a calming room, and an imagination station with a make-believe grocery store, among other real-life play settings.

 

Additionally, there are costumes for all sizes and ages, so visitors can play and pretend to their hearts’ desires. Martinez is especially excited about the designated parent space in front of the play gym with free coffee where parents can sit and watch their kids.

 

“Our gym says kids gym, but we are including teenagers and adults with disabilities – we want to include the entire disabled community from birth through adulthood – which is any age,” stresses Martinez. “I want them to be able to come in and play and make friends like them – the social struggles for them are so real,” she added.

 

The cost for two hours of open play is $18.99, with opportunities to purchase monthly and annual memberships, and multi-visit packages, birthday party packages and special event offerings, including a parents night out.

 

Open play with parents supervising their own children is We Rock the Spectrum’s primary offering. However, Martinez is working with Washington County and other counties to explore providing respite care, especially in the summer when there is a shortage of caregivers and parents need a break, even if it’s for a couple of hours.

 

She also hopes to offer summer camp eventually, and envisions creating social skills classes for teens so they can find other teens with similar interests because she believes that connection is so important.

 

While it is finishing construction and final inspections, We Rock the Spectrum-Woodbury is accepting sponsorships, including financial donations and product donations from its Amazon Wish list, which can be found via a QR code on the business’s Facebook page: We Rock the Spectrum – Woodbury.

 

“We’re doing this in order to bring this space together and be top tier – we want it to be everything that people want,” notes Martinez.

 

To stay up to date on the new gym’s grand opening, follow We Rock the Spectrum–Woodbury on Facebook or visit www.werockthespectrumwoodbury.com.

 

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