Special Wins LLC is an Autism-Family Business serving the 20% of Americans living with disabilities, with a focus on children and adults in the autism community.  We believe in reinforcing the incremental daily wins, successes and survivals that help grow and empower these amazing individuals!

Our Story

Zach was born in 1999 and diagnosed with PDD at 18 months, then more specifically, autism at age 3. He was always physically quite healthy but had a severe lack of communications, such as no meaningful eye contact or pointing, and non-verbal. Though he gradually developed a handful of words, they were echolalic and hardly understandable. He was 8 before he could answer Yes or No with a head nod, and sometimes even the actual word. Now at age 22, Zach can speak phrases and is even learning to sing and play guitar! His aggressions continue to diminish as he gains more and more communications and life skills.

Each developmental stage brought new challenges, failures and successes. Our mission is to share the successes and wins. For example, we were inspired to look into music therapy after hearing the Gabrielle Giffords story in which she completely lost her speech due to a brain injury, yet was able to sing every word to Mary Had a Little Lamb.  So, we printed the lyrics to the only music Zach would ever allow to be played in the car (Shrek Soundtrack) and that very day more words left his lips than his entire lifetime combined! It didn’t matter that none of the words were understandable, the fact that he tried to sing by reading the lyrics aloud began developing muscles in his mouth and throat that were a giant step in the right direction. These are the little steps that add up to significant achievements.

We have curated a selection of sensory and educational items, easy to wear masks and costumes, exercise and outdoor activities, and of course plenty of fidgets, toys and games.

Our involvement with the larger Special Needs community, such as Special Olympics, Special Needs Boy Scouts and Autism-specific schooling has shown us that anything is possible for our family living with autism.

Why we choose certain products:

Ravensburger puzzles are an excellent example of a special win that we carry. They do not easily peel as they are fidgeted with by anxious fingers. Pieces fit together nicely and the printing is always crisp and clear. I cannot tell you how much money we’ve wasted on puzzles from other brands that only led to frustration and meltdowns.