Our family will be running The Dopey in support of Autism Speaks in January 2026. This run is very meaningful for us. One of us is autistic.
After an extremely long and multi-faceted evaluation process, we received the autism diagnosis. This diagnosis came with so many emotions: relief, because we finally had diagnosis that helped to make sense of so many seemingly disparate issues; anxiety, because we there were so many unanswered questions; fear, because of the amount of misinformation that is currently being spread about autism; trepidation, because we do not know how others will react about the diagnosis; and, gratitude, because we have the good fortune to have great support and excellent medical professionals to help us.
When families receive an autism diagnosis, the amount of misinformation can be overwhelming. Autism Speaks helps. The organization provides reliable information and support services to families, funds research, and advocates to support neurodivergent individuals (check out www.autismspeaks.org).
We have not shared this diagnosis publicly before today. But we decided to share in order to bring attention to the importance of understanding and accepting neurodivergence. We are raising $10,000 to support Autism Speaks and its important mission. While we will not be aggressively campaigning for donations (we are reluctant fundraisers), when we signed up to run for Autism Speaks, we agreed to help raise funds AND awareness for autism.
The Dopey is a daunting race. You run a 5k on Thursday, a 10k on Friday, half marathon on Saturday, and a full marathon on Sunday. This may sound tough but compared to the struggle that some face when dealing with neurodivergence, we are grateful to have the capability to participate.
If you would like to support us on our journey to bring about greater visibility, research, understanding, and support for the autism community, please consider making a donation to this fundraising campaign. Donations of every amount are truly valued.
Thank you!
Login with Social