Our son was diagnosed 7/30/08. It was a TOTAL surprise to us. All we were wanting was to confirmation that Koleton needed to receive speech serivces since he was delayed in that area. When the doctor said "your son has autism", my whole body shut down. I was afraid to tell people becasue I was afraid we would be treated differently and that he would have a sheltered life. He has made such inprovements since starting with his speech and special ed therapy. His therapists are the greatest and we have nothing but the upmost respect for them. They do wonderful work and without them, I just dont know how far he would come.

Kole has been going to Stepping Stones Learning Center since Jan 2009, and he has made friends and is one of the happiest little guy when he is there. I love their system and love his teachers for the hard work they put in with him. He has gone from hardly talking and just using jargin and baby talk, to being able to tell you what he has done throughout the day and now he can talk to his peers and they talk back to him. He’s a little social butterfly now, where before he was the one who would be in the corner playing alone and not caring what was going on around him. He came out of his shell. I’m beyond happy.

Autisim has been in my family for many years. It all started when my 33 year old son was diagnosed by 3 different doctors @ age 12 with a variant of Autism. 2 of them said Aspergers Syndrome and 1 said PDD-NOS. The treatment options were very limited. I thought he was the only one with that condition.

Not so, 3 years ago my grandson (now 5) was diagnosed with a version of Autism spectrum.. Last week his sister age 6.5 was officially diagnosed by the Kirsch center in Rochester as having Aspergers Syndrome.

So as anyone would do I did some research because my single son has Aspbergers . I found a detailed listing of all the symptoms starting at around age 3 to adulthood which was both frightening and heartbreaking.

Most if not all the symptoms I saw also fit me way back to when I was 4. Back in 1954 no one even noticed those things. I just thought I was different. As I looked further I discovered the same traits showed in my father. Not all, but most. That means that back 4 generations I have traced autisim in our family, specifically Aspbergers Syndrome. I feel like it was my fault, but back then no one knew what my father and I had. Now they do.

My son Nicholas was diagnosed with pdd, with anxiety disorder and OCD, when he was 5 years old. I had three daughters and was told that boys take longer to mature. But when he couldn’t even be in school without crying all day, I knew something was not right. The school recommended a DOCS evaluation and it was confirmed that my son was on the autism spectrum with anxiety disorder. Now my son is 15 yrs. old and he still has alot of meltdowns, he is in a BOCES program and is not mainstreamed anymore. The pressures of regular school are too stressful not to mention the bullying. It is taking him alot of time to adjust to all the changes. He does not like riding the bus, but is going on it cause he likes the driver. Everyday is a challenge, but I hope for his sake that it gets easier. His social and emotional maturity are alot less than his age. I just want him to smile and be happy.

My story is about my son named Joshua. He was diagnosed with autism at the age 2. They told us that joshua would never be able to have a job or show any types of emotions towards another person. They said he wouldnt be able to love. They were wrong!

Joshua Started Happiness House as soon as we found out that he was autistic.They were so great there. He learned so much from them and they were very supportive. When it was time to start kindergarten the school was against placing Joshua in a regular kindergarten but with the help of Happiness House we got them to give him a shot. Now joshua is in first grade a regular first grade and he is one of the best readers in his class. And to the doctors that said it couldnt be done that he will never learn to love you were wrong. We got hugs and kisses and I love you everyday and its the greatest feeling in the world. So its not impossible nothing is impossible if you just believe.

My name is Daniel John Svoboda. I am 25 years old. I was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder with Psychomotor Retardation at the age of three. I went through some very difficult times growing up with Autism. I was often picked on and made fun of. It was from these very difficult situations that The Imagifriends were born. The Imagifriends live in a place called Imagiville. In this imaginary place no one is ever picked on or mistreated in any way. Everyone is loved and accepted for who and what they are. Everyone in Imagivile helps and cares for one another.

Each Imagifriend that I draw is different. They come in many sizes, colors, and designs. None of them are ever mean or cruel. They each have their own special job and purpose in Imagiville. Every Imagifriend knows that as long as they have a kind heart it doesn’t matter what they look like. Some of them are physically or mentally handicapped but that’s O.K. I have just had my first book published too. It’s about acceptance and respect for those with Autism.

I want to use The Imagifriends to help others with Autism know that they are special just the way they are. I have created The Imagifriends coloring book and I do Imaginames. That is where I create an Imagifriend out of the letters of your name and connect them. I have also written my first book called My Imagiville. I donate a portion of what I earn to The Autism Help Network and to my wonderful church, Hope Community Church. Being Autistic has presented me with many challenges in my life. From these challenges I have learned to never give up. I want to thank the Lord for giving me the talent to draw and I want to use this talent to help others. Remember, “Everyone is Special Just the Way They Are!!!”

I have a new website, www.MyImagiville.com. On the website you can read more about my mission for acceptance for those with Autism. You can also see more Imagifriends and order special Imaginames too. The book and coloring book and Imagistuff can be purchased as well. I hope everyone has a great blessed day everyday!!!

D.J. Svoboda

On September 22, 1995 Allison Leah Decker entered my life. I was a young mom, naive and scared about raising a child. My husband shared the same apprehension and joy regarding being parents. Allison seemed normal for the most part, despite the 3 months of colic. At the age where babies begin to focus on objects, discovering their hands, we realized Allison was not entirely “normal.” She could sit in her infant seat and stare at her fist for hours.

I was a fan of the group Enigma. There was this song titled Carly’s Song that would send Allison, (3 months old) into a screaming fit. She was terrified of it. It was unusual but still, I assumed it was just her personality.

At age two we struggled to understand her. Allison would grow very frustrated as she couldn’t even comprehend vocalizing her thoughts, instead she pointed and grunted and then screamed. We knew something was wrong. We still pressed onward hoping for a break through on her own. She began Kindergarden and that is when the school staff sat us down and told us she seemed autistic. We both worked for the Allegany ARC and dealt with Autism, we had suspected it. We brought her to the Kirch Center and they diagnosed her with Autistic Spectrum disorder none other specified. She has more characteristics of Autism but not ALL. With a diagnosis in place, we were able to work on teaching her to speak, socialize, and become herself. Allison is now going to be 13. She is a bit immature and does take things literally but she has come a long way and has grown so much. Thanks to all of the support systems from the ARC, Kirsch Center , and school staff we have been able grow with her.

Each mile stone is a challenge and not often easy. But she has come a very long way and I am proud of her.

Our story is about our son, Michael. He was diagnosed with autism at 2 years old. At thart time we were told not to expect much from him, that he would never speak or be able to be on his own.

But they were wrong!!! Michael is now 14, and doing very well. He is in middle school and has been on the honor roll all year. It goes to show you that nothing is impossible. My wish to all of you, is that your children do as well as Michael has done. My hats off to Steve, Jennie, Jeralyn, and Tom for putting this all together to raise awareness for autism. It is a wonderful cause for alot of great kids.

An amazingly perfect pregnancy brought us our beautiful, perfect baby boy, CJ—all 9lbs 10oz and 23 inches of him. Aside from being lethargic and needing some breathing assistance after birth, he was perfect and in our arms within minutes. Not long after bringing him home we faced challenges—with breastfeeding, reflux, special formulas, and sleepless nights. At 6 months we noticed he wasn’t meeting typical developmental milestones. He was not cooing, not yet making eye contact. Pediatricians were less than supportive and did not provide guidance. They encouraged us to be patient with our son. When CJ was 12 months old, he was not crawling, not walking. He did not feed himself, and could barely roll over, but was able to speak clearly and even knew the planets in order from the Sun to Pluto.

Seeking help from the Kirsch Center at Strong, evaluation results confirmed our suspicions—CJ was diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome, a high functioning form of Autism. We were successful in getting him into an aggressive therapy program and immersed ourselves into learning more about Autism. Our miracle workers are the SEIT specialist, speech therapist, occupational therapist, physical therapist, and social worker. With their care and support, our little boy enjoys playing soccer and riding his bike. He is able to verbally and physically interact with us and his brother, and while he shows signs of his syndrome (gets overwhelmed in social situations, does not understand sarcasm), his team has helped him tremendously to manage his feelings and adapt to situations. We’re blessed by the support we've received and know that CJ will live a normal life because of it.

Our son was a perfect, healthy 9 lb. 1 oz. baby at birth. We couldn’t have been happier! Although, we did notice that he wasn’t a very cuddly baby and when he was hurt or scared, he DID NOT want anyone to hold or caress him. We also noticed that any loud or sudden sounds would cause him to scream and cover his ears. He didn’t speak much and rarely made eye contact. When he was very young he had a repeated series of ear infections which led to the placement of PE tubes. We talked to his doctor and decided to start speach therapy. The thinking at that time was that all the ear infections caused Alex not to develop language. After working with his speach therapist, she noticed that he had many sensory issues as well and that is when we start occupational therapy. Even with all this help, we still that we were missing a big piece of the puzzle. Luckily for us, Alex was in a special pre-school through BOCES and the teachers there advised us to have him tested. We took him to the Developmental Primary Progam at the old Genesee Hospital where he was finally diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome. Finally, we had a diagnosis! Having a real diagnosis really paved the way for us to get Alex the help he so desparately needed! We’ve been blessed to have a group of fantastic therapists and teachers at Thornell Road School in Pittsford and Alex has made incredible strides and now is almost completely integrated in a “normal” 3rd grade classroom. Alex still has difficulty with transitions and doesn’t much like physical contact, but in ever other way he’s a funny, happy child!

When you have an autistic child, you have this puzzle that you are constantly trying to solve. My son’s childhood days were at turns frantic, sad, frustrating, confrontational, and victorious. Those days were spent in the doctors’, therapists’ and yes, the school principal’s office. When I think of them now, I am still exhausted, and my son - now 23 is relieved he does not have to be in that setting any more. I won’t dwell on the school years right now because I suspect that the majority of you reading this are living those years right now.

The story that Jason and I want to share with you in an accomplishment that we are both excited and happy about every day – Jason’s Driver’s license. Jason has autism and is high functioning, just under the spectrum for Asperger’s. He has accomplished many things that we were unsure would happen when he was younger – these accomplishments just take a bit more time to complete. A driver’s license was not something that Jason or I dreamed about. When he first showed no interest in taking his permit, even though he’d had every page memorized for two years, I was a bit relieved. I wasn’t sure how things would go, but I did know that most things are very black and white in Jason’s world and the words brake and gas and brake now! took on very scary connotations. Well, reality set in, Jason had a part time job that I drove him to, Monday through Friday 8pm to 11pm, soon to be a full time opportunity for him. So Jason did take his written test when he was almost 18 and he did pass it the first time – it was a proud moment for both of us. Then reality set it, there are many things that Jason and I learned together over the years and one of the most valuable is that, I could not teach him to drive.

Fortunately for us, we have a wonderful organization in our area, Rochester Rehab. We were referred to the program through Jason’s BOCES support team. Rochester Rehab helps adults, both able and disabled to achieve the freedom of driving a car. Jason was first accepted for the program for six months, it ended up being an 18 month relationship that ensured that Jason passed his test. It took two tries but the instructor even drove him to his test and then took him to McDonald’s to celebrate! We are thankful for this program and for the wonderful support we found there.

The story doesn’t end there; Jason had had his license almost two years now and last month, he received his first speeding ticket! That may seem a bit strange to some one reading this but perhaps if I remind you that Jason sees everything in black and white – with little or no gray, you’ll understand. I think that Jason finds his freedom in his driving and though I do not wish to see more tickets from him, I find that ticket very reassuring because I know he is experiencing joy while he is behind the wheel.