Meet Glori DeLorio, BCBA and Larry Thigpen

We had the good fortune of connecting with Glori Delorio, and Larry Thigpen and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Glori and Larry, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
I have been in the applied behavior analysis business for 20 years now. I always wanted to be a teacher like my mother and grandmother before me. When I was in college and working as a para-educator, I was introduced to special needs children and knew I had found my calling. That position opened up new opportunities for me to learn about the science of behaviors and begin working directly with families and their children on the autism spectrum. I shifted my college career to follow the track of earning a master’s degree and becoming a board certified behavior analyst (BCBA). Not only did I quickly realize I had a knack for mentoring the behavior technicians I oversaw, as well as a knack for being a support system to the families, but they noticed. Many families & staff over the years asked me to open my own business. I didn’t know anything about business and I just enjoyed working in the field. Until, I met Larry. He started to notice my passion for the field as well as how the community responded to me. He asked me several times why I hadn’t started my own company and one day said, let’s do it together. He was a paralegal in law school and looking to invest in a small business. I said yes and here we are.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Larry and I decided two things early on. That we were going to do applied behavior analysis (ABA) our (my) way and not repeat mistakes I witnessed in the field, working for other organizations. We also wanted to be very employee focused. Many companies don’t really care about their employees, but we take a different approach. While a company is in business to turn a profit, we not only want to pay a fair wage but also foster the growth of our employees, whether they plan to pursue this as a career or not. We plan to have a reading program, where we buy the employees various books that will improve their mind and/or skill set. We want to have retreats and vacations that the employees can attend to get some much needed respite and team building skills. We also encourage volunteering with our population of clients and currently run community events that get our clients and their families out oc the house for a little fun. Lastly, we want to be there to support our employees as they navigate challenges in their personal lives, no employee is just a number at MBS. Our clients are the reason for our business, but our emoloyees are the heart that beats to make the company successful

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Well, I was born and raised in Southern California (Larry is from Chicago, so he would take you to a Cub’s game, to eat an Italian beef at Al’s, and for a Chicago slice at Lou Malnati’s).
I am an amusement park enthusiast and a Disney adult. So first stop, Disneyland, absolutely. Then to eat at Tam O Shanter, where Walt Disney had his own table. We’d visit the Magic Castle in Hollywood as well as the restaurant Yamashiro above it, looking out over the Los Angeles skyline. Both Larry & I are thespians and love musical theater. So, we’d have to go for dinner at Miceli’s on Cahuenga to see the singing wait staff, then see a production at the Pantages theater in Hollywood. Finally a trip to the beach and the famous Santa Monica pier, followed by a drive through Beverly Hills and dinner at Lawrys the prime rib on La Cienega (Larry also enjoyed visiting Lawrys in Chicago).

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
We’d both like to thank our parents. Larry and I are only children. His parents are 86 & 92, married 65 years. My parents are in their 70’s and together 52 years. Every family has their challenges, but both of our parents worked very hard to send us to prestigious schools and support our dreams. My mother specifically always quietly supported whatever I wanted to do and said because she gave me the unique name of Glori, that I would one day do something great.

Website: https://monarchbehaviorservices.ueniweb.com

Instagram: @monarchbehaviorservices

Linkedin: Monarch Behavior Services Inc

Facebook: @monarchbehaviorservices

Yelp: Monarch Behavior Services

Image Credits
All parents have given their express permission for these photos to be posted