At last week’s Rye City Council meeting, Autumn Terrill was announced as the winner of the 2025 Rye Human Rights Award. Terrill’s party planning business, Give Good Parties, hires workers with developmental disabilities.
The Rye City Human Rights Commission solicits nominations from the community each year for an organization or person who helped foster human rights in Rye.
“What Autumn has built is rare: a for-profit business that teaches inclusion, not as a footnote, but as a foundation,” said Rita Capek, chair of the commission. “She’s proof that commerce and compassion don’t just co-exist, they make each other stronger.”
Give Good Parties helps with all aspects of event planning, including music, party favors, decorations, and desserts. The inspiration for Terrill’s business comes from her younger brother, Adam, a 44-year-old with developmental disabilities living in their hometown of Cedar Falls, Iowa.
“Watching Adam navigate the difficult transition out of school programs and into adulthood, Autumn saw a gap that too many fall through: the lack of meaningful employment, real job training, and the simple dignity of taking pride in your work,” Capek said. “So, she did something about it. Give Good Parties hires, trains, and fairly compensates differently abled young adults, taking the time to discover each person’s unique strengths and building a role around them.”
Among the many relatives, commission members, and other supporters on hand for Terrill’s award were two of her workers: Capek’s 20-year-old daughter, Emma; and T.J. Neeves, an 18-year-old Rye High School senior with special needs.
“T.J. was my very first employee,” Terrill said. “It takes guts to try something new, but it takes a lot of faith for somebody to say yes. I will be forever grateful.”
Terrill also serves on the board of the Rye Youth Council and New Canaan Mounted Troop, a youth equestrian center that offers riding programs for children with special needs. She also helped launch Pitch Your Peers Westchester County, a movement to engage women in local philanthropy and fund grants to nonprofit initiatives.
Through her efforts in these organizations and Give Good Parties, Terrill wants to further expand her efforts to make Rye and Westchester County a better place for teens and young adults of all abilities.
“I just want everyone to know, we’re just getting started here,” she said. “We’re just getting warmed up, and I can’t wait to see what the future holds. I’m so proud to be part of a community that recognizes and honors the importance of human rights.”
After Terrill accepted the award from the city council, Mayor Josh Nathan commended her efforts to improve the local community.
“I want to congratulate and thank Autumn on behalf of the council and the city as well,” he said. “I also want to thank Rita and the human rights commission, and Councilwoman (Marion) Anderson for really elevating the work that you all do. We’re lucky to live in a city like this, and you might think here in Rye and peer communities, a human rights commission isn’t really necessary or called upon that often. But at our best, it’s part of how we model a compassionate community and how we all live by the golden rule.”
