Inspired to Build a Community
Friday afternoon, lunch break. I had just sat down in the break room, laptop in front of me with plans of banging out another page on this literature review that has been all consuming lately. My phone rings, and strangely, it's my friend, Jenn. She honestly has NEVER called me in the middle of the day.
The reason for the call is one of her coworkers, whose son is, like GameTeen, on the Autism spectrum. Alas, the coworker has no local support network. To be honest, I don't, either, but I've cobbled a pretty good one on the Internet over the years. 'M' and her husband need help in finding an appropriate school for their son, as the local school district hasn't met the son's needs. They've mirrored our path through the educational system, with their son clearly needing a one to one aide. The school district keeps on stating that their son must stay in a school which triggers meltdowns. Not very logical.
They've contemplating moving, as they both are professionals that can find work in their respective fields anywhere in the US. The question is where might they find the right schools, clinicians, and support community? Not a simple task, as there are no known resources from any of the national associations that attend to their son's diagnoses.
So, the three of us met for lunch, and talked things over. The simple answer that came to mind is to pull together the people I've met over the years in a Facebook group and share what we know. It isn't an answer, but it's a start.
The reason for the call is one of her coworkers, whose son is, like GameTeen, on the Autism spectrum. Alas, the coworker has no local support network. To be honest, I don't, either, but I've cobbled a pretty good one on the Internet over the years. 'M' and her husband need help in finding an appropriate school for their son, as the local school district hasn't met the son's needs. They've mirrored our path through the educational system, with their son clearly needing a one to one aide. The school district keeps on stating that their son must stay in a school which triggers meltdowns. Not very logical.
They've contemplating moving, as they both are professionals that can find work in their respective fields anywhere in the US. The question is where might they find the right schools, clinicians, and support community? Not a simple task, as there are no known resources from any of the national associations that attend to their son's diagnoses.
So, the three of us met for lunch, and talked things over. The simple answer that came to mind is to pull together the people I've met over the years in a Facebook group and share what we know. It isn't an answer, but it's a start.
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