When Vikki Thomas, director of marketing at Abacus Therapy Center, started working there, she didn’t expect the work to feel this personal. But it does.
Progress looks different for every child. One might use a talker to ask for chicken nuggets. Another finally waves hello after weeks of practice. One parent received a video of her daughter laughing on a trampoline. She texted back: “I never thought I’d see the day.”
That’s the kind of moment that stays with Thomas.
Abacus opened its new Palos Heights location earlier this year. On Saturday, Oct. 25, the clinic hosted a ribbon cutting and open house, with trunk-or-treat activities for families. The center provides ABA therapy for children with autism and combines other therapies in the same space, including speech, occupational and physical therapy.
Mary Coleman, the clinic’s director of operations, helped create Abacus with a clear purpose in mind.
“My brother, Alan, has autism,” she said. “He’s my best friend. He’s the reason this clinic exists.”
Coleman spent years in healthcare helping doctors open and grow practices. Eventually, she decided to build something of her own.
“I’ve helped everyone else build their dreams,” she said. “Now it was time to build mine. With intention.”
That includes more than therapy. Abacus works with outside providers to offer psychiatric and neurology support, and families have the option of genetic testing. These tests can help identify how a child may respond to certain medications and which ones are better avoided.
“I watched my nephew go through years of the wrong medications,” Coleman said. “It made a hard situation even harder. We wanted to make it easier for other families.”
At Abacus, parents don’t just drop their children off for services. They’re part of the process. Families receive daily updates and meet regularly with staff to talk through progress, changes and challenges.
“We’re not babysitting,” Thomas said. “We’re teaching, adjusting and always working toward independence. And we don’t wait months to share updates. Parents hear from us every single day.”
Each child’s therapy is based on an individual plan. Some children attend 30 hours a week. Others come part time. The plans evolve as the child grows, and parents stay involved throughout.
Julianna Diguido’s son, Stefan, started services at Abacus in July. What stood out to her was how the staff didn’t just focus on him, but on her daughter too.
“They really put an emphasis on siblings,” she said. “It’s hard having a brother with special needs. But they support the family dynamic here.”
She also pointed out how the clinic uses real-life setups to help children build life skills.
“They go beyond just ABA,” she said. “They help kids learn how to do things on their own.”
Coleman works closely with many families from underrepresented communities and understands the cultural stigma some face around an autism diagnosis.
“In some cultures, it’s not something people talk about,” she said. “We want to make sure families feel supported, not judged.”
She’s quick to point out that this isn’t just a local issue.
“Dubai has an autism lounge at their airport. Pakistan is investing in research,” she said. “The world is changing. Families shouldn’t feel shame for seeking help.”
The Palos Heights clinic is the second Abacus location. The original site, located at 2112 Winding River Drive, Unit 104, Naperville, continues to serve families in that region.
Coleman describes the two clinics as part of the same team, working with shared values and training. More locations are in the planning stage.
The clinic also stays active in the community. Abacus will be decorating a tree at Brookfield Zoo this season and continues to look for ways to bring families together outside of therapy.
For Thomas and Coleman, it all comes back to building trust with families and helping kids move forward, one step at a time.
“Every week we see something new,” Thomas said. “A small step, a new skill, a word spoken out loud. That’s what keeps us going.”
