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Content warning: Talks of suicide and suicidal thoughts.
September is Suicide Prevention Month, and Jones & Swanson is proud to highlight one of the community’s most heartfelt and impactful efforts. The story of e’s Club is an inspiring testament to hope, support, and honoring of the legacy of Erin Horst.
Q1: TELL US ABOUT YOURSELves
Stacy Horst and her husband Darren are the founders of e’s Club. They met in Florida and have been married for 34 years. They both own a residential painting company, and Stacy is also a real estate agent.
While being busy bees, they still take the time to enjoy the beach, going boating and fishing on the weekends. While they both enjoy cooking, Stacy would say her husband is more of a chef than she is!
Q2: TELL US ABOUT THE ORIGINS OF E’s CLUB
Stacy and Darren’s daughter, Erin, was a bright and kind girl who dealt with many challenges in her life. Erin was diagnosed with ASD level 1 (formerly known as Asperger’s Syndrome). This is a developmental disability that results in delays and developmental differences through communication, social interactions, and/or behavior.
Despite the challenges she faced, Erin possessed remarkable talents. She was an exceptional chef, played nearly every sport, and was a member of her school’s basketball team. However, throughout her life, she endured relentless bullying—at school, at church, on social media, and even through email. She found solace in the close bond she shared with her parents, whom she considered her best friends. Tragically, the weight of her struggles became too much, and at 17, Erin took her own life.
Four days after Erin’s passing, Stacy and Darren found themselves sitting in her bedroom, the weight of grief heavy. Through their shared silence, they said together “We have to do something.” In that moment they knew, no parent should ever have to shoulder this loss.
Determined to make a change, Stacy and Darren envisioned a program to support teens and young adults facing challenges similar to those Erin endured. One thing they both noticed about Erin was that her deficit was on weekends. She didn’t have a safe space to connect with others who shared her struggles — individuals who accepted her for who she was.
Aspiring to preserve the legacy of Erin’s compassion, both founded Erin’s Hope for Friends, a program determined to help teens with autism find a foundation for friendship and meaningful connections. Then in 2014, Erin’s Hope for Friends opened their physical e’s Club locations.
e’s Club is truly one-of-a-kind– a vibrant space created to be a mini ‘Dave & Busters’ filled with activities and events. It’s a haven with no therapy, no phones, and no parents– just a place to escape from the daily stresses of life to have fun and forget their worries. Families and other volunteers also join in to spend time with the kids. This not only helps foster long-term friendships but greatly helps destigmatize the assumptions behind autism.
During the COVID pandemic, e’s Club unfortunately had to shut down their physical locations in Georgia. In response, Erin’s Hope for Friends created the virtual e’s Club program that helped connect teens all across the United States. After the end of the pandemic, they reopened their physical clubs again in Woodstock, GA, and Lexington, KY, while continuing the virtual program due to its popularity among members.
Many members of e’s Club also started to age out the kid’s program which prompted them to create the young adult’s program, and eventually, as Stacy discussed, the adult’s program will follow.
Q3: WHAT ARE THE FUTURE GOALS OF E’S CLUB?
The ultimate goal of e’s Club is to establish at least one location in every major city, aspiring to be as big as the Boy’s & Girl’s Club of America. The need for these safe, supportive spaces is evident across the country, as more and more teens with autism seek meaningful connections and a place where they truly belong.
Autism affects an estimated 1 in 36 children in the U.S. and roughly 1 in 10 children or teens diagnosed with autism either has suicidal thoughts or acts on them. In Stacy and Darren’s home state of Florida, there are currently over 329,000 diagnosed cases of autism, which means that at least 32,900 people are having suicidal thoughts or trying to act on them. This has nothing to do with autism itself, but isolation. Thus, the need for e’s Club stands out.
Q4: ARE THERE FUNDRAISERS COMING UP OR WAYS TO HELP?
e’s Club accepts online donations here. They are also going to have a benefit concert on October 11 at 6:30 pm in Downtown Woodstock called Notes of Friendship.
To help support e’s Club online, Stacy Horst has been nominated for the National Association of REALTORS Good Neighbor Award. Every vote goes towards securing a grant to help Erin’s Hope for Friends, you can vote here.
Jones & Swanson thanks Stacy Horst for her time, and advocates for the growth and expansion of Erin’s Hope for Friends program.
