Spotlight on Sonoran Learning & Behavioral Services
06/01/23
Serving Children with Autism Using a Tailored, Personal Approach
As Autism diagnosis rates continue to rise, finding quality, compassionate care for children with Autism has become increasingly difficult. Paige and Justin Breeden, co-owners of Sonoran Learning & Behavioral Services, are on a mission to change that.
“Mass Market” services for children with Autism are becoming more prevalent to meet the rising demand for services. But effectively serving children with Autism needs to be customized and specialized per child. Individualizing treatment based on each family’s needs and dynamics is a much better approach, says Paige, a board-certified and licensed behavior analyst. Sonoran LBS provides therapy tailored to each individual child. While Paige and her team specialize in early intervention for children under 10, the company serves clients with Autism ages 2 to 12.
Paige’s Passion Realized After Pandemic
The couple’s journey to opening a business of their own began with Paige’s passion for working with kids. After receiving a bachelor’s and master’s in Applied Behavior Analysis at ASU, Paige began working in smaller for-profit and nonprofit organizations serving children with Autism. Then COVID hit and organizations scrambled to provide services via telehealth. “Trying to provide therapy to young children with Autism via Zoom was not effective,” says Paige.
The children suffered and parents struggled. Aware of the difficulties this was causing, Paige began providing in-home therapy to a few students independently in March 2020. That led her to leave her full-time position and open Sonoran LBS in August of that year. Since then, the business has grown tremendously as parents and the local Autism community discovered a provider who put their child’s needs first. Not long after, Justin left his job in banking to help support their thriving business.
Community to Benefit from Expansion Plans
With plans to open satellite locations throughout the Valley to serve more children in need, Justin and Paige are steadfast in their mission to continue to offer a boutique and family-oriented approach to ABA therapy. “We are very community based and hands on,” says Justin. “We are dedicated to serving the local community in which we live.”
“Our biggest competitors are those organizations that are Investor or private equity driven,” says Justin. “We are adamant about not ever going down that road. We will never relinquish control or green light what we think is a reduction in care or reputation because it could be easy money upfront.”
Local Banking is Just Better
The Breedens believe strongly in supporting local businesses and the local community, and that applies to who they bank with as well. “Originally, we were with a small bank that merged with a larger bank. The merger was not fun and proved to be terrible from a customer standpoint,” says Justin.
The Breedens eventually pulled their relationships from the larger regional bank and began banking with Republic Bank of Arizona. “We want to bank with people who know who we are, who can provide real solutions, and who we can talk to when we need to. Republic Bank of Arizona is all of that and has exceeded our expectations so far. We’ve really enjoyed our relationship with the bank.”
“I’m so proud of Justin and Paige for the work they do and the success they have had,” says RBAZ’s Karen Vitkovich. “They work tremendously hard for their clients and their work is so important. You can feel the passion they have for the children, the parents, their employees, and the local community. I’m honored to be their banker and to see the amazing things I know are on the horizon for Sonoran LBS and the communities they serve.”
For more information about Sonoran Learning & Behavioral Services, please visit sonoranlbs.com or call 602.882.4238.