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Ben Chutz, Dani Gillman, Brodie and Julian

Birdhouse Takes Fligh

Parents of a child with autism create
technology tohelp other families.

D

ani Gillman was a single mom
with an autistic daughter,
Brodie, who ran a popular blog
detailing her daughter's challenges and
successes as a way to help other parents of
autistic children.
Using a pencil and paper, she vigilantly
kept track of her daughter's
daily regimen, including diet,
medications and vitamins,
sleeping patterns, bathroom
usage and doctor visits. These
notes were then organized in a
three-ring binder, but the data
Dani recorded was difficult
to process in order to adapt
Brodie's daily routine — and
it was easy to misplace the
binder.
Enter Ben Chutz. In 2011,
when Brodie was 6 years old,
Ben and Dani began dating.
The tech-savvy entrepreneur with strong
organizational skills took one look at the
methods Dani employed to keep track and
analyze Brodie's complicated life and was
immediately puzzled.
"He said there must be a better way of
doing this:' Dani recalled. "Ben wanted to
know why I wasn't using newer and bet-
ter technology for this daily practice:' She
explained to him that she had searched
and there simply wasn't any better option
available.
Ben, 29, came up with the idea for
"Birdhouse for Autism" not only so the
two could raise Brodie using the data
of her daily patterns, but also to help
other parents of autistic children find the
answers they need. Just as Dani, 36, has
been a salvation for tens of thousands

of parents with her mommy blog, "I'm
Just That Way," now the West Bloomfield
couple, who belong to Temple Shir
Shalom and also have an infant son,
Julian, are helping thousands of parents
across North America with the Birdhouse
website and mobile application.
The name "Birdhouse" is
derived from the anonymous
nickname Dani uses for Brodie
on the blog and because, as
Dani explains, "It sounds like a
warm, safe place for a bird:'
As participants in the
Bizdom Startup Accelerator
(part of the Rock Ventures'
Family of Companies),
Birdhouse has free office space
in Downtown Detroit next
to Grand Circus Park and
receives consulting from start-
up mentors. The couple has
made great strides since Ben first ques-
tioned Dani's pencil and notebook system
in 2011. Today, Birdhouse has a robust
website as well as Android and Apple iOS
mobile apps — both free — that have
been downloaded thousands of times.

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Birdhouse Solves A Need

"It's chaotic for parents of autistic chil-
dren because there's no 'one-size-fits-all'
approach for a child with autism," Dani
says. "Ifs very individualized. Managed
care really comes down to the parents
keeping everything organized. Even
with doctors, therapists, teachers and
dietitians, we're the ones trying different
therapies, diets and interventions to help
our children thrive:'
Birdhouse for Autism gained national

Birmingham ♦ Detroit ♦ Grosse Pointes ♦ Royal Oak ♦ Rochester

James F. Lessenberry, Behaviorist

28 Years Serving the Great Lakes Region

Animal Learning Systems-

animallearningsystems.com
313.882.6180
248.236.9974

Birdhouse on page 30

September 18 • 2014

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