John’s Crazy Socks recently moved into new office and warehouse space and when we did, we moved in a new school district, the Farmingdale School District. We will now be hosting a workgroup of special education students from Farmingdale High School and expect to host tours for more Farmingdale students.
John Cronin, co-founder and Chief Happiness Officer at John’s Crazy Socks, said, “We want to do all we can to help students in the Farmingdale Schools.”
At John’s Crazy Socks, we strive to be good corporate citizens; we want to engage with and support our local community. We also have a mission to show what people with differing abilities can accomplish. When we moved into our new facility, we immediately reached out to the Farmingdale Schools. We spoke with Superintendent of Schools Paul Defendini to learn what we could do to help the schools.
The Farmingdale Schools hosted the Long Island Special Olympic Spring Games and John’s Crazy Socks was there to support the Games. We hosted a booth offering games for the athletes and their supporters as part of the Olympic Village.
When we held a ribbon cutting ceremony at our new facility, we invited the leadership from the Farmingdale Schools. This week, we met with Brian Norton, Chair of Special Education at Farmingdale High School and Don Cassidy, Director of Special Education for the School District and teacher Christie Boniello to plan visits and workgroups from the Farmingdale students. Brian said, “This will make a wonderful opportunity for our students.”
A group of Farmingdale special education students will visit John’s Crazy Socks once per week to gain some work experience. John’s Crazy Socks will provide an orientation and a variety of tasks for the students to perform. The students will experience a workplace and real work thus helping them prepare for their future.
Mark X. Cronin, John’s Co-Founder and father said, “It is so hard for students with a differing ability to find meaningful work. We want students to see that there are jobs out there for them and that we need their contributions. We want to inspire and encourage students to plan work in their future.”
John Cronin is not only an entrepreneur and co-founder of John’s Crazy Socks, he also has Down syndrome. He knows how important work is to him and how hard it can be to find a job. “We want to create jobs for people with differing abilities,” said John, “and we want the world to know what people with differing abilities can do.”
John and Mark discuss why businesses gain an advantage in hiring people with differing abilities in their TEDx Talk, entitled, “Hiring People with People with Differing Abilities is Not Altruism, It Is Good Business.” That Talk is available on YouTube and the TED platform.
Scheduling a Tour or Work Group at John’s Crazy Socks
We have information about the tours and workgroups at our website. You can read more about our tours here and you can read about our workgroups here. You can also send an email to tours@johnscrazysocks.com or speak to our Community Organizer, Maria Lerner.
John’s Crazy Socks hosts six workgroups each week from schools and social service agencies. The groups typically contain six students that visit once a week for one to two hours. During their weekly visits, the students perform a variety of tasks and observe the work in our warehouse. At the end of their time with us, we give each student 
a thank you gift bag.
John’s Crazy Socks offers both in-person and virtual tours. John and Mark X. Cronin, our co-founders, conduct many of the tours themselves, our colleagues help when John and Mark are out of town. We have had over 1,000 students visit John’s Crazy Socks through our tour program. The tours are designed to inspire and encourage students as they contemplate their entrance into the workforce.
About John’s Crazy Socks
John’s Crazy Socks was inspired by John Lee Cronin, a young man with Down syndrome, and his love of colorful and fun socks—what he calls his “crazy socks.” He and his father, Mark X. Cronin, started the company as a social enterprise with a mission of Spreading Happiness™. With more than 4,000 socks, John’s Crazy Socks is now the world’s largest sock store. More than half their employees have a differing ability, and their Giving Back program has raised over $500,000 for charity partners like the Special Olympics, the National Down Syndrome Society, and the Autism Society of America. Most of all, they are Spreading Happiness™.
For more information about John’s Crazy Socks, visit our webpage, Facebook page, Instagram account or YouTube channel. You can also contact us at 631-760-5625 or via email at service@johnscrazysocks.com.
