Outside the Box is Inside the Fishers Community
W
hen my son, Will, was eight, I was seeking day camps that would provide supports for children with disabilities. I learned about Camp Create U at Outside the Box (OTB) in Indianapolis from another parent, which is how I hear about so many resources. This was my son’s first day camp so his home healthcare nurse would accompany him. I didn’t have any expectations except that I hoped he would be safe and not have too many meltdowns. But what happened instead was beyond my expectations. Will was not just engaged, he was excited, joyful, loved, and included. And for the first time since Will had been born, I saw what his future might look like, what could be possible. Until then the only vision I could imagine for him was a nursing home or a sheltered workshop where he would make pennies on the hour. It’s not that I didn’t dream of more or want more, but at that time,
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January 2024
BY DAROLYN “LYN” JONES
these were the options available. I’m a planner, so even though Will was still very young, I was always looking forward. I visited nursing homes that take individuals with disabilities and those adult day centers and sheltered workshops and remember feeling so emotionally worn. I remember telling my husband that I’d rather he just stay home because after school was over, there was nothing meaningful out there for him. But that changed with Camp Create U. It’s just a weeklong day camp for children with disabilities and a small part of what Outside the Box does. But what Camp Create U did for my family and other families was introduce us to an adult day program for individuals with disabilities that was unlike any other in the greater Indianapolis area. I recently met with co-founder and board member, Kelly Hartman, and Executive Director, Michelle Miller, to better understand how
OTB operates and why their new location in Fishers is significant. OTB’s origins begin with Kelly Hartman and her staff at what was then Insights Consulting, a residential and behavioral supports company that provides Medicaid waiver services. At weekly meetings, her staff’s constant lament was—We have to do something different and better for our clients. Their clients weren’t receiving the services and supports they needed to live happily. The larger group settings and sheltered workshops were not meeting their client’s needs. Wanting to make better decisions for their clients and finding no available options, they created one. In 2008, they opened up a single conference room at the office to four young women, all friends, who had just graduated from special education services at Carmel High School. Their parents wanted them to stay together, so that peer group became OTB’s first class. They called themselves The Celebrities. With part-time
