22 | MARCH 21 • 2024 
J
N

F

or more than 50 years, 
Thursday nights have 
had Thursday Night 
Social Group (TNSG) on the 
calendar for Julie Charron of 
Bloomfield Hills. She’s one 
of a number of participants 
from around Metro Detroit 
who come together with 
volunteers and caregivers to 
relax, take part in activities 
and have fun with friends at 
the twice-monthly events. 
 “I like to socialize with 
other people and get to 
them and make friends,” 
Charron says. “I really like 
bingo and hot chocolate 
night the most.”
The J’s 
Thursday 
Night Social 
Group started 
in Downtown 
Detroit and 
migrated to West 
Bloomfield, says 
Stephanie Zoltowski-Siordia, 
 
Psy.D., director of special 
needs enrichment at The J. 
The group provides social 
opportunities for young 
adults and adults with spe-

cial needs to interact with 
some of their friends and 
to make new friends while 
parents and other caregivers 
take a break. 
Some participants come 
from group homes; others 
are families involved in the 
summer camp program, she 
says. And at this point, she 
says, given the program’s 
longevity, many of them are 
adults who have grown up 
with the social group since 
they were kids. 
Before the pandemic, 
events could see 40-45 peo-
ple join, whereas now they 
draw more like 15-20, she 
says. They do hot chocolate 
bars, bingo nights, pizza 
parties and Purim parties, 
mostly these days at The J. 
“We want [participants] 
to have a sense of belonging, 
that they have a group that’s 
just for them, that they’re 
going to feel normal, and it’s 
something that is familiar 
to them,” Zoltowski-Siordia 
says. “Familiar faces, famil-
iar activities, and just let 
them feel like anybody else 

Stephanie 
Zoltowski-
Siordia

The J’s Thursday Night
Social Group is twice-monthly
fun for participants.

Thank God 
 it’s

KAREN SCHWARTZ CONTRIBUTING WRITER

OUR COMMUNITY

Jonathan
Horton

Social group is open for individuals 16 
and older with special needs; every event 
has a wide variety of ages and abilities.

Many of TNSG’s participants have 
been attending events for decades. 
Happy Hour & Games is one of
the most popular events.

Some participants at social group events also attend 
The J’s summer camps held in West Bloomfield. Thursday

