Today, over 70 million children and adults are affected by autism, one of them I happened to birth personally as Alaiya!  Autism awareness was not always commonly recognized, however has overtime gained great support. Limited research brings about limited resources and support. One stigma I heard the most during Alaiya's journey was "She will grow out of it!" Alaiya is my first and only child with this diagnosis, born full term and healthy which left me feeling hopeless when a lot of questions were unanswered. 

All in all, over time as her advocate, I learned about resources and support and  veridically I learned as her advocate to not try to "Fix her" or "Change her" but to ACCEPT and EMBRACE her as she was WONDERFULLY made, to provide for her the BEST care, the best services and environment possible, so that she is able to navigate life as much as anyone else---But most importantly Her Way! Each autistic child, have unique strengths, challenges and potential. Autism Speaks will be there for them. You and I can be too.

It’s only through the dedicated support of people like us that Autism Speaks can continue their vital mission work. Each year, the Autism Speaks Autism Response Team makes direct contact with tens of thousands of individuals looking for advice or guidance and more than one million people access their free nationwide autism services and resources. They continue to partner and support research to improve the lives of people with autism by investing in science that will allow more personalized treatments and therapies. You can find out even more about where your fundraising dollars go at autismspeaks.org/our-work.

Please join me by donating to help me reach my fundraising goal. Together, we have the power to enhance the lives of people with autism and make a meaningful difference. Thanks so much for your support!