In Campbell, a turtle and an embroidery piece have one thing in common: They are utilized by a small business to support individuals with disabilities resembling autism.
Founded in 2020 by Cupertino-based Sherry Meng, Turtleworks is thought by South Bay residents as an accessible custom embroidery service where people of all abilities can work together.
The company's mascot is the common-or-garden turtle and serves as a reminder that anyone, no matter their pace or ability, can work hard and achieve their goals, Meng said.
Local businesses and individuals can place orders online or in person on the Turtleworks office on West Campbell Avenue, west of the San Tomas Expressway. Using several commercially available embroidery machines, the team embroiders uniform designs onto dozens of baggage, hats, shirts and more.
Although only a handful of employees and interns consistently work on assignments, the corporate works with the nearby Fremont Union, Campbell Union and Los Gatos-Saratoga Union highschool districts to recruit adults with disabilities to assist. They are paid for his or her time by school districts.
Making machine-made embroidery products is a really visual process that may be broken down into smaller tasks, which is ideal for individuals with special needs, Meng said. Depending on their skills, helpers are trained to perform a wide range of tasks, including loading embroidery hoops into machines, packing orders and chatting with customers. The opportunity offers adults not only technical but additionally social experiences.
“We are not isolating them,” Meng said. “When a customer comes in, we let them talk to customers and help them. Here we try to create a good and supportive working environment.”
Intern Maya Rumale learned about Turtleworks through her special education program at Monta Vista High School in Cupertino. Since October 2023, the senior with special needs has been coming to the office twice per week to place away supplies, cut thread bottoms from finished pieces and cargo embroidery frames.
“It’s the kind of job where I don’t notice time passing,” the 17-year-old said recently within the office. “I go to work and think, oh, two hours already done?”
Rumale said she appreciates working in a field that supports individuals with special needs.
“I don’t know how many other places do this,” she said. “I feel that people with special needs need spaces that are almost entirely dedicated to them and are committed to supporting them.”
Her response is precisely what Meng hoped for when she began starting the shop.
Meng, a former Silicon Valley engineer, quit her job in 2009 to take care of her two children, one among whom is autistic. She began volunteering at Friends of Children with Special Needs (FCSN), a nonprofit organization in Fremont that helps individuals with special needs and their families.
Meng developed a passion for creating life and profession skills training opportunities. She created work programs for FCSN highschool and post-secondary students, including businesses where students could make soap and reuse recycled Lego bricks to sell to community members.
She decided to take her ideas outside of the nonprofit world and opened the Turtleworks office in 2020, just before pandemic shelter-in-place orders went into effect in Santa Clara County.
“I had no experience in embroidery,” Meng said. “After we opened, the pandemic hit and there was no one to help me or teach me anything.”
After looking for instructions online, Meng finally got the hang of operating the machines and started offering online and on-site training to the Turtleworks crew. They have accomplished 400 orders in 2023 and have accomplished 180 orders thus far this 12 months. Meng said the winter holiday seasons are typically the busiest time for custom orders, but Mother's Day and graduation are also popular.
For the past two years, Kristi Saso, president of San Jose-based business maintenance company Pro-Sweep, has used Turtleworks to embroider her company's logo on various hats, shirts and jackets.
Saso admires how Meng creates job opportunities for young adults with special needs, an age group often neglected by society.
“The fact that she is so patient and allows them to learn skills that will benefit them throughout their lives,” Saso said, “that is incredibly generous to our community and so important.”
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