Project Annual World Autism Awareness Walk (Our Second Year)

PACE (Parents Of Autistic Children Everywhere) has grown in the last year.  There are now136 members to date, with 5 administrators:  Mike Wilwand, Arlene Reid, Jacqueline Mason, our resident sage Anne Fountain and of course, your's truly, The Diva.

We've learned from our first World Autism Awareness Walk last April.  We've heard people's suggestions and are working hard at coming up with a better plan.  We want to make April 2nd 2014 a moment that brings a little something to your life.

As great as our first annual walk was, we kind of boo-booed on one small detail...  how to get us back to our vehicles...  OOOOPPPSSS...  We've addressed that issue for this year.  I can't give you all the details yet, but what I can tell you is that from now on, you won't have to do the walk twice.  Sorry about that.  I really, really am.  But even with that small boo-boo, you gotta admit, overall, we had a great walk.  I loved the pictures our photographer Anthony Schellenberg took of us.  Again, if you're looking for a professional photographer, please check out Anthony's site at:  http://www.anthonymarkphotography.net/.  If you want a patient photographer who knows his stuff, you need to be checking in with Anthony soon.  The holidays are coming, so I'm going to bet he's going to be booked solid fairly quickly.

If you didn't come to the walk last April, I really hope you make it out this spring.  If you did walk, who did you walk for?

Being around children with autism has changed my life in a way only the sweet innocence of someone with autism can.  Autism has changed my life...  I am twice the woman I used to be because of it.  I've had to change my way of thinking to understand my children, think outside the box.  It's not an easy thing to do, but I learn something new every day to help me along.  I think the greatest obstacle that any person with autism has to overcome is other people telling them what they are and are not capable of doing.  My children know that I am one person that they will not have that challenge with.  Bill Gates, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Edison, Beethoven, Emily Dickinson, Mark Twain, Mozart, Einstein, Van Gogh...  What would our society look like without these brilliant minds?  And they HAD AUTISM!!!  This is why my children will never have to battle with me as to what they are capable of, because of these people, I will always PUSH my children to do their best in everything they do in life.

That is why I walk.

There are other children who are much more severely affected with autism than mine, and I know a few of them.  They may not be the next Einstein.  I know that people think they are less capable, less knowledgeable, less, less, less and less.   I walk for them too, because people who think my friends are LESS need to understand that different is NOT less.  My friends and family are MORE deserving than anyone in this world of understanding, patience and love.

That is why I walk.

So, I hope to see you walk beside me, because the more people we have walking, the more others will see that we are here.  Life isn't watching the moments in your life pass you by, life is making those moments count for something.  April 2nd is your moment.  Make it count!

In order to make this walk a moment in your life that will count for something, I need some feedback.  I would like input from those who attended last year's walk.  What would you change?  What should we add? Email me at autism.diva.help@gmail.com.


In the mean time, consider yourselves hugged!

Lou