Moving More Than Auction Items: How PALS and Two Small Men Built a Meaningful Community Partnership

The term "educational services" doesn't being to describe everything the PALS Autism Society has offered over the last two decades. While its main mandate has been to serve children and youth with autism from kindergarten through age 21, PALS also offers therapies, recreation, and year-round support for their families that can't be found in the standard classroom.

“PALS is an independent school for children and youth with autism," says Executive Director Andrea Kasunic. "We provide education and therapies and recreational activities that go above and beyond what’s available to families in the regular school system.”

It's been a long journey for Kasunic, who has now been with PALS for 17 years. And it all started with what was supposed to be a short-term position.

“Back in 2009, I applied for the job and packed up and moved across the country from Ontario to work there,” she said. “It was supposed to be a two-year contract. And then here we are—17 years later.”

Today, PALS has evolved into a more wide-encompassing organization than it was when Kasunic came on board. It's grown in terms of infrastructure also. Where they were once in a small work space in East Vancouver, PALS eventually made the move to a bigger office in New Westminster in 2019.

“We used to be in a small office building in East Vancouver that we adapted for our needs,” Kasunic recalled. “But we were always outgrowing it. Now, we're in a four-story, beautiful home that we can call our own.”

That kind of growth and expansion takes time, money and support from partner organizations, volunteers, donors, and local businesses. This is where Two Small Men with Big Hearts has played a major role in making the PALS vision a reality.

One of the PALS' biggest annual events fundraising events is a silent auction featuring more than 200 donated items for sale. The challenge for Kasunic was to find a moving company that could handle the logistics of this.

“We were looking for a way to safely and securely and efficiently transport the items,” she said. “We wouldn’t want anything to happen to those 200 items that we spent the last year accumulating and gathering from our supporters.

"Two Small Men offered to help us free of charge, and we just couldn’t believe it. We had to ask several times: 'Is there really no fees? Are you legit?'”

What started as a one-off arrangement turned into a long-lasting partnership between the organizations.

“They were so amazing to work with that first year,” she said. “And just each year after that, we’ve been holding our breath and hoping that we’d be able to continue the partnership.”

Because of the money, time and effort saved from having the donated moving services, PALS is able to redirect that energy and investment toward other important projects.

“Time is always money,” Kasunic explained. “Knowing that we have a company that we trust and don’t need to research other providers and get quotes… just knowing we have Two Small Men on speed dial saves us a lot of time and stress.”

One of the things that sets PALS apart from other educational organizations is that it stays active during summer months. During that time, kids are visited by guests, get to go on field trips and experience recreational activities that combine learning with fun.

“We’re a year-round school,” Kasunic explained. “In July and August, we turn the school into more of a camp-like experience for the students.”

It's these kind of programs that rely the most on fundraising support.

“All those activities are only possible through donations,” she said. “We’ll be accepting donations to help support the field trips, special activities, and special guests that we have coming to keep the students having fun during the summer and not feeling like they’re still at school.

“The support for a non-profit has been really integral to helping us meet our fundraising goals. We really appreciate working with Two Small Men."