She also scrounges thrift stores and Facebook for bargains and things people don’t even know they have. It has meant several trips to the Twin Cities, where she has had more luck finding specialty goods. The problem is, finding second-hand equipment for children with autism in the Red River Valley is a tall order. “The goal is just to simplify the journey for parents and try to help them overcome those first few hurdles when their child gets diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder.” On the huntĭahnke is always searching for a deal she can pass along to another family in need.
Her hope is Toadally Therapeutic will help parents in a similar position overcome the initial obstacles when handling their child’s diagnosis. Toadally Therapeutic specializes in items specific to those on the autism spectrum, such as these mood flipbooks for children. She also alleged the state did not initially allow her to appeal the decision, which she called “totally illegal.” The state’s explanation for the denial was that the tennis balls could be manipulated or used for another purpose, Dahnke said. She was recently denied funding to purchase tennis balls for Broden, which he throws back and forth with a chiropractor to develop his nervous system.
The waivers are hardly a cure-all, though, Dahnke said. Many families are not accepted for the program, Dahnke said, but she secured a waiver for Broden. The waivers provide funding for families to care for their children at home rather than at a specialized facility. “There are so many of us that are struggling and I just kind of wanted to pay it forward to that next mom that’s sitting in that waiting room.” ‘What are other families experiencing?’ĭahnke also has experience with the North Dakota Department of Human Services’ autism waivers, a program for which she said many parents have difficulty qualifying. “I just knew there was nothing like this in the community and I wanted to start something like this,” she said. Inspired by that experience, Dahnke said Toadally Therapeutic will buy back any equipment a child doesn’t like to ensure parents can find the specific solution for their child without being tied down.
“The whole business idea just hit me like an epiphany three or four months ago and I just went for it,” Dahnke said. The store is named after Broden’s nickname, “Brody Toady,” which was inspired by the frog-like pose he uses to soothe himself. The coming together resulted in Toadally Therapeutic Community Store, an online marketplace for second-hand goods for children with autism. What Dahnke could not have seen coming, however, was the way in which her son’s condition and her long-standing desire to own her own business would intersect. “I knew I was going to end up being a business owner one day, I just didn’t know how,” she said. The West Fargo mother of four has also always known she would one day become a business owner. “Call it mother’s intuition, I knew this little boy was going to be different.” I had a gut feeling that there was going to be something special about him,” she told The Forum. “He changed my life before I even knew it. Four years later, Dahnke’s maternal hunch proved true when Broden was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. Before he was born in 2013, Dahnke knew that her now 7-year-old son Broden was going to be special.