The Unit offers programs to people of all ages and abilities and is broken into three specific work units: youth programming, adult programming, and outreach.
The Lorenzi Adaptive Recreation Program offers Las Vegas youth an after-school recreation program along with a summer camp for anyone 7 to 21 years of age with or without disabilities. The program goals are to meet the physical, emotional, social and intellectual needs of the participants and to maintain and increase the participant’s recreational and leisure skills. The New A.G.E. (Activities, Games and Education) Program is an adult ‘after-work’ recreation program available to anyone 22 years of age and older. This is a social group for high functioning adults with developmental disabilities that aims to expand their social circles and experiences.
The Adaptive Recreation Unit also offers many outreach programs, including is wheelchair sports, golf lessons, and wheelchair fitness. Paralympic Sports Club Las Vegas, in conjunction with the Clark County School District, is a program designed for children and adults with physical disabilities offering sports training and competitions. The mission is to maximize the potential of people (grades 1-12) with physical disabilities through sports.
Journey of Hope South participants work with the ARU in all three of these areas while in Las Vegas. The team plays wheelchair basketball against local squads, usually getting their butts kicked in the process. That evening they go out on the town for dinner and bowling with the New A.G.E. crew. Finally, the next day, the team pairs up one-on-one with members of the Lorenzi youth program; the ARU says that this is one of the best events for them because of the close personal bond that forms between the pair.