Autism Awareness Fundraiser

Today is a very important day for my family; it is our annual Autism Awareness fundraiser.  This is a cause very close to my heart.  My Uncle Patrick, my father's brother, struggled most of his life with being different.  Growing up in a time before general awareness, he was classified as "retarded" and was treated as if he was somehow a lesser human being.  While so much of the world saw Uncle Pat this way, to his nieces and nephew he was fun, intelligent and loving.  It was not until his mid fifties, a year before his death, that a doctor looked beyond the "retarded" classification and realized Uncle Patrick was Autistic.

Uncle Pat and I- My Sr. Prom

Watching the way Uncle Pat was treated by outsiders hurt.  They were too caught up on the fact that he was different to see  how special he really was.  They didn't care to take notice of how he was always reading and probably knew more about World War II than anyone else I know.  They never noticed his appreciation for music, or understood his talent with numbers.  Uncle Pat could memorize war and weather statistics with a memory far superior to mine.  Our fondest memories were of Christmas time, Uncle Pat's favorite time of the year.  He was happiest when decorating, listening to Christmas music, watching Holiday movies (cartoons were his favorite) and counting how many homes had Christmas lights (a yearly statistic he could recite back to you from decade prior).  Uncle Pat truly was special and I wish more people would have left their prejudices behind and taken the time to see it.

Mikey after last yrs. walk

While spending time with Uncle Pat taught me a lot about living with an adult with Autism, our family would soon be faced with the challenges of an Autistic child.  My cousin Jennifer was the first in my mother's side of the family to get pregnant.  Everyone was thrilled when she gave birth to a handsome baby boy.  As Mikey grew it became clear that he showed signs of Autism.  My cousin and her husband immediately began to get Mikey the best treatment available.  It has not been an easy road, communication was especially difficult when he was younger, but he has come such a long way.  Every time I here about how great he is doing in school, or watch him with his little brother I appreciate how amazing he is.  It was watching the struggles of this amazing little boy that made us decide as a family to do more.

One of the first things we realized was Autism Awareness hadn't come very far despite the large number of people affected.  The same confused, and at times nasty looks my Uncle received, were thrown at Mikey.  I think so much of this comes from a lack of understanding.  Looking for a way to spread awareness and understanding we came across the organization Autism Speaks.  This organization provides valuable information, services, and fundraising for the Autism cause.  My cousin Jessica organized our family and we participated in our first Autism Speaks Walk in Manhattan.  In order to raise money for Team Mikey, and the millions of people also affected by Autism, we also hosted a Team Mikey Fundraiser night.

This fun night out has become a tradition, and every year we host a night out with music, food, drinks and fun.  Tonight will be our third annual Team Mikey Fundraiser and it promises to be a great night filled with memories.  We have collected donations for months and there will be a wide assortment of raffle prizes.  For one of our raffle prizes this year we created a needlepoint patriotic place mat and napkin ring set.  We chose the patriotic theme because we felt it represented Mikey and his family.  His mother Jennifer was in the Army and his father Michael is still an active member of our military.  Even with all the personal struggles they face, as a family they continue to be devoted to America.  My mother, sister Stephanie, and I all worked on making this set extra special and filled with love.


With the Autism Speaks Walk in Manhattan only a few weeks away, on June 3rd, we still have a lot of money to raise to meet our team's goal.  Hopefully tonight will make our fundraising goal a reality.  I will post pictures soon of tonight's fundraiser.  In the mean time, you can follow my fundraising efforts, and our teams by clicking here.