CrimsonRise Opens Permanent Home Honoring Advocate Nicholas D'Amora

The facility is named in memory of Nicholas D'Amora, one of the four original autistic founders who passed away in 2023. His mother, Barbara D'Amora, who served as Capital Campaign Co-Chair, spoke at the ceremony about her son’s enduring impact on the group’s mission. The center’s establishment follows a successful capital campaign supported by families, donors, and local community partners, including the Northfield Bank Foundation and the College of Staten Island.

Staten Island Borough President Vito Fossella led the ribbon-cutting ceremony alongside executive director Lakshmi Rao Sankar and various local officials, including Assemblyman Sam Pirozzolo. The new headquarters will allow CrimsonRise to expand its programming, which focuses on providing communication access, peer engagement, and education. By securing this space, the organization reinforces its commitment to the principle of "Nothing about us without us," ensuring that nonspeaking autistic individuals remain at the forefront of decisions affecting their lives.