France/ In Saint-Thibault, the Sensas playroom turns its sensory challenges into donations for the Handmirable organization
In Saint-Thibault, the Sensas game room is now a partner of Handmirable. With every game played, players will help raise funds for this Latignac-based organization.
Located in Saint-Thibault-des-Vignes, in the Courtillière area, the Sensas game room recently formed a partnership with the Handmirable association in Lagny-sur-Marne. This virtuous cycle allows players to help support the beneficiaries of this local nonprofit, which offers activities for children with disabilities in Seine-et-Marne.
Tapping into the Senses
The tone is set as soon as you walk through Sensas’s colorful entrance. Here, you’ll have fun as a team while doing something meaningful. Deprived of sight and relying solely on touch, smell, and taste, will we be able to identify the foods? Will we be able to identify scents that seem familiar to us? To succeed and solve the puzzles throughout the game, we’ll need to work closely with our teammates and trust our senses.
The goal? To complete the challenges in each chamber of the game in order to collect the 12 precious tokens, which will bring double the satisfaction: on the one hand, the joy of success, and on the other, generating donations that Sensas will contribute to its partner organization.
An experience rich in values
“Every time players complete a challenge, they’ll earn a sensory amulet. Each one will result in a donation of €0.10 to a local nonprofit working in the field of disability,” explains Valérie Juniot, co-manager of the Sensas Marne-la-Vallée game center. We partner with the Handmirable organization (each Sensas franchise partners with an organization of its choice, Ed.), which makes recreational activities accessible to people with disabilities. This really aligns with our values—that everyone should be able to play, regardless of their physical or intellectual abilities. It’s one of the things that’s close to our hearts.”
In fact, if a player has even the slightest limitation, the Sensas team will find a tailored solution to allow them to participate in the challenge just like everyone else. To provide personalized support, Valérie, Marjorie, or Léo—the “masters of the senses”—are on hand throughout the two-hour game and can step in at any time to help.
Significant Donations to Handmirable
It was Sensas that reached out to the nonprofit located on Rue Vacheresse in Lagny. “Sensas welcomes groups of people with disabilities and adapts accordingly. We quickly discovered we shared common values,” explains Magalie, an educator at Handmirable. From the convergence of their respective goals to make leisure activities inclusive, a meaningful partnership was born. “The funds raised will allow us to reduce the costs of workshops for families, led by qualified professionals. But it also helps us with other projects we’re funding.”
For example, Handmirable self-publishes children’s books in FALC (Easy to Read and Understand, Ed.) and translated into pictograms. Donations from partners have also enabled the organization toinvest in a Joëlette—a specialized wheelchair—so that families can enjoy accessible outings.
Come as You Are
Before embarking on the Sensas adventure in 2025, Valérie Juniot worked in the photography industry and managed a staff of about 100 people. It was through this experience that she discovered—and came to love— the importance of building social connections and team cohesion. “I visited several franchises in the indoor recreation sector, and what I found exceptional about Sensas is that it’s intergenerational and inclusive,” she recalls.
About 60% of the sensory experience workshops at Sensas take place in the dark. Deprived of sight—their primary sense—participants explore their other senses in ways they never do in everyday life, and everyone finds themselves on an equal footing. The course was designed to raise awareness about disabilities in a fun way. A truly delightful experience!
Source: actu.fr/ile-de-france/
