Our Autism Journey..... Evans Story Part 7 By now, we were slowing making the transition from Early Intervention to the school system and I was researching everything I could find on Autism. If I had had Google then, HOLY COW I think I would have burned up the modem! Even though we did not have a diagnosis, many of the therapist that we saw were mentioning the A word to us too. I was asked by our EI case worker if she could refer us to some different agencies. I was fine with that since I felt like we needed all the help we could get.One if the agencies we were referred to was the CARD Center at FSU in Panama City. (CARD stands for Center for Autism and Related Disabilities) I was told that they would come out and observe Evan and make some recommendations for the schools and for us to follow up at home. They would have literature and books to borrow from their library and would help with any questions that we had. First, how much is this going to cost??? Well, it was free and still is. After our referral, the Card Center wanted to offer an Autism Support Group in Chipley. Really, in Chipley?? Yes, Chipley! Oddly enough there were several families who were finding out that they too had a child with Autism. I signed us up. What did we have to lose?? And, it was FREE! Well going to this meeting changed our life! The facilitator of the meeting was none other than Ann Brock Smith who happens to be the most educated, biggest advocate I know. She had a son who was a teenager who just happened to have AUTISM. In that one meeting we learned more than we needed to. This woman became my friend and my mentor. When I grew up, I wanted to be just like Ann Smith. She was smart, she was funny and she knew the law. She knew the challenges that lay ahead for us. She said be strong and dont take no for an answer, negotiate when you have to but ALWAYS ask for the moon and the stars. I never knew just how often this would be true. She was my go to. She knew exactly what I needed to do and just how to do it. She even went to Dr. appointments with us. This woman was an angel sent straight from heaven. God knew I was going to need some help and He put her in the right place at the right time. I will NEVER be able to thank her for all that she taught me. My wish is that I am able to pay it forward. I hope that we can help families as much as she helped us. Ann Smith I love you and I dont think I could have ever continued our journey without you.
Posted on: Sat, 12 Apr 2014 21:21:00 +0000
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