The West Valley nonprofit Sounds of Autism presented the city of Litchfield Park with a new community recognition award, honoring the city’s efforts to support residents with autism and other vulnerable populations.
The Unified Responder Community Award recognizes communities that demonstrate coordinated support between educators, first responders, nonprofit organizations and local leaders to create safer and more adaptive environments for people with disabilities and others considered at risk.
The recognition was presented during a city council meeting by Cricket Barrientos, founder of Sounds of Autism, a nonprofit launched in 2011 in Goodyear. The organization has spent the past 15 years providing support services across Arizona, with a focus on communities in the West Valley.
“We started as an autism organization,” Barrientos said. “But over time we realized many of the people coming through our programs were also dealing with domestic violence recovery, reentry after incarceration, human trafficking, PTSD and challenges faced by seniors.”
As a result, the nonprofit broadened its mission to support individuals “from prenatal to the final farewell of life,” she said, expanding services to families and individuals across multiple at-risk populations.
The Litchfield Park recognition stems from a project developed under the organization’s Unified Initiatives program, launched in 2020 as the second of four pillars guiding the nonprofit’s work. The program aims to bridge gaps between the autism community and the leaders who serve them, including schools, first responders, city governments and nonprofit groups.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the nonprofit partnered with college students from Arizona State University, Grand Canyon University, Maricopa Community Colleges, and Huntington University to develop what Barrientos described as an “adaptive rubric” to measure how communities respond to the needs of residents with autism and other vulnerabilities.
Students spent a year designing the system and then quietly evaluated community responsiveness over four years, contacting schools, police departments, fire agencies, victim advocates and nonprofit organizations to gauge how effectively they handled requests for help.
Barrientos said the project involved at least 25 community leaders and volunteers.
“We saw communities really start to come together to become more adaptive,” she said.
Litchfield Park was among several West Valley communities that completed the evaluation process. Others include Luke Air Force Base, Avondale, Goodyear, Buckeye, and Surprise.
Barrientos highlighted local collaboration as key to the recognition, citing examples of residents and community members working together to support neighbors with autism.
“These are the kinds of stories we hear all the time,” she said. “Communities pulling together to watch out for families and make sure people are safe.”
City officials said the recognition reflects years of partnership with the nonprofit.
Litchfield Park’s mayor and council have supported the organization through grants and community partnerships, helping expand services for families in the area.
“We’re happy that we can take at least some of our small amount of funds and give it to an organization that has clearly benefited members of our community,” Mayor Thomas Schoaf said during the meeting.
Barrientos said the award is meant to serve both as recognition and as a reminder.
“We hope you put this somewhere where you can see it,” she told city leaders. “It shows you’ve done good work, but it also reminds us that supporting our community has to happen every single day.”
Meet James James Goldmeer joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in July 2024, starting their career as a reporter in Goodyear and Litchfield Park.
Community: James grew up in the West Valley, calling Avondale home and going to school in Glendale and Peoria. Returning to the community after university, James plans to get involved in everything arts and culture, and civil rights.
Education: Northern Arizona University a bachelor's degree in Journalism, a certificate in Professional Communications, with a minor in English.
Random Fact: James spent half a year as an intern for the Arizona House of Representatives communication team, working with legislators to inform the public through press releases and social media.
Hobbies: James collects postcards and old books, reads memoirs and attends local jazz shows.
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