The mother of a child with autism is praising the Strongest Families Institute‘s programs for helping her daughter.

On Thursday, the institute received $500,000 from the province to help expand their programming.

Lisa Freake says she enrolled in the program after her daughter, Lacy, was diagnosed with level three autism and global developmental delay.

As a result, Freake says it was “horrendous” to take her daughter anywhere outside the house. As an example, she said she couldn’t get her daughter to talk in school because she was experiencing too much stress and anxiety, but in the end she was able to complete a full day.

She says while Lacy still becomes frustrated in some settings after a while, and there are other issues they are working through, she says she is a “totally different child” after going though the program.

“It is the best thing our family ever went though,” she said.

Institute CEO Patricia Lingley-Pottie was emotional upon hearing the family’s story.

“That’s why we do what we do.,” she said. “If we can make an impact on even one life, and be life-changing for them, we’ve done our job.”