{"id":897,"date":"2026-05-26T10:35:50","date_gmt":"2026-05-26T10:35:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=897"},"modified":"2026-05-26T10:35:50","modified_gmt":"2026-05-26T10:35:50","slug":"phoenix-thrift-store-helps-adults-with-autism-find-purpose","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=897","title":{"rendered":"Phoenix thrift store helps adults with autism find purpose"},"content":{"rendered":"
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PHOENIX (AZFamily)<\/b> \u2014 A Valley thrift store is helping adults with autism find a sense of belonging while offering shoppers a way to save money.<\/p>\n

Read more Man arrested after woman shot in north Phoenix neighborhood<\/a><\/p>\n

Seeds for Autism operates Garden of Treasures, a thrift store where all proceeds support programs for adults on the autism spectrum. The store sells clothes, toys and electronics.<\/p>\n

Trinity Washburn, a participant in the program, works at the store and said the experience has changed her life.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy experience with autism has been real rough for me because sometimes I listen to what people are saying, but I can\u2019t fully register the task,\u201d Washburn said. \u201cSo, being here has helped me basically figure out how to communicate with people.\u201d<\/p>\n

Building skills and confidence<\/h2>\n

Mary Ann LaRoche, director of Seeds for Autism, said participants often arrive believing they cannot accomplish tasks.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese guys come to us, and they\u2019ve been told that they can\u2019t do things, feel like they can\u2019t do things, and so they need a resource, a place where they can feel like they belong,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

LaRoche\u2019s mission is personal. Her brother was diagnosed with autism in the 1970s, when resources were limited.<\/p>\n

The organization teaches woodworking, sewing and other skills. LaRoche said the programs go beyond job training.<\/p>\n

Read more Driver clocked at 172 mph: \u2018That\u2019s not a typo\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThey learn to work through anxiety and their coping skills that they need to help them to breathe, to know that they\u2019ve got support when they have a feeling of overwhelmingness,\u201d she explained.<\/p>\n

Washburn said the skills she has learned extend beyond the workplace.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s also helped me in my personal life, how to be organized, how to stay focused, how to basically complete a goal, and how to not let basically my negative thoughts overwhelm me as much,\u201d Washburn said.<\/p>\n

LaRoche said she has seen participants transform over the years.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe see that they are feeling a sense of pride and feeling like they can do something,\u201d she explained. \u201cThey\u2019ve been told that they can\u2019t, they believe that they can\u2019t, and now all of a sudden, they\u2019re in an environment that\u2019s supporting them and believing in them and encouraging them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some participants will eventually get jobs. Others will learn cooking skills. The organization also offers summer programs for adults with autism who want to participate.<\/p>\n

The thrift shop is located on 7th Street, jut south of Interstate 17. The store is closed this week for summer break but is typically open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.<\/p>\n

See a spelling or grammatical error in our story? <\/i>Please click here to report it<\/i>.<\/i><\/p>\n

Do you have a photo or video of a breaking news story? Send <\/i>it to us here<\/i> with a brief description.<\/i><\/p>\n

Read more Man\u2019s body recovered after drowning in Salt River on holiday weekend<\/a><\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Seeds for Autism operates Garden of Treasures, a thrift store where all proceeds support programs for adults on the autism spectrum.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":896,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-897","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"\nPhoenix thrift store helps adults with autism find purpose - Tucson Moving Report<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=897\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Phoenix thrift store helps adults with autism find purpose - Tucson Moving Report\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Seeds for Autism operates Garden of Treasures, a thrift store where all proceeds support programs for adults on the autism spectrum.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/tucsonmovingreport.com\/?p=897\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Tucson Moving Report\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-05-26T10:35:50+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?p=897#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?p=897\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/71841c7d449e6ab1ace6bce2f5277255\"},\"headline\":\"Phoenix thrift store helps adults with autism find purpose\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-26T10:35:50+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?p=897\"},\"wordCount\":497,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?p=897#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/03226f8d75b0fb890109b81ebcc88816.avif\",\"articleSection\":[\"Interesting\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?p=897#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?p=897\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tucsonmovingreport.com\\\/?p=897\",\"name\":\"Phoenix thrift store helps adults with autism find purpose - 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