I would like to begin by dedicating this special day to my parents who were determined not to be ignored and never give up. And to my grandmother who broke my silence and got me to talk. I was diagnosed with autism at eighteen months. My parents and I were living in Germany. The diagnoses was made by a military psychiatrist. After the diagnosis, the military made arrangements for us to return to the United States. We came back to Anniston which is my hometown and lived with my grandmother for a few months until we knew what to do and where to go.

My first symptoms started with being non-verbal, rocking, sound sensitivity, resistance to change and I had some special abilities such as drawing and I loved music. I'm also visually impaired which has bothered me since birth but never had anything to do with me being autistic. This was a disability I already had before. I got my first pair of glasses after I turned a year old. After coming home, my mother started taking me to some doctors which did little good. Some would say "well he's just a baby going through some phases and he would come out of it soon." Well that wasn't enough for my mother. She knew there was something more wrong and nobody was listening yet. I still wasn't talking yet and I kept to myself a lot. My grandmother took this pretty hard because the last time she saw me I was only a few months old. Now I was already walking and playing. I have a favorite story I like to tell about how my grandmother got me to talk. Every night when she put me to bed she would look at me and say "say mama, say mama" at me. She would do this every night until one night I said "mama" and that's how I finally began talking. It was the greatest joy I think my grandmother ever had and that's how my silence was broken.

I was three years old and this was just the beginning. After having no luck with the doctors on trying to learn more about my situation we went to the mental health center and met with a social worker. After meeting with this person, my mother learned about the Autism Society of Alabama and that's where we learned about the TEACCH program in North Carolina. We tried a few programs through Jacksonville State University and had no success. These programs were only experimental at the time. I remember one scenario where they had me do a task and if I didn't cooperate I would get squirted with a water gun for punishment. There was another scenario where I was held down in a chair and I would be kickin' and screamin'. Neither of these scenarios were working or providing any results and it all seemed to be set towards more punishment than praise. So we decided to move to North Carolina and I enroll into the TEACCH program at the University Of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. I was also put into a special pre-school devoted to working with autistic children and had ties to the TEACCH program. TEACCH stands for Treatment and Education of Autistic and related Communication Handicapped CHildren. This program was very unique and in a class by itself. I really believe it was one of the only renowned programs in the whole country to provide a different approach to autism. I would go through three and a half years of various sessions. The major emphasis was to train my parents as therapist. Since the home was the best environment to learn in. They would give a set of task's to perform with me at home. We traveled to the TEACCH center once a month for progress reports and to get new home assignments. There were also times where they came to our house to do behavioral observations, give ideals and suggestions. This was a very coordinated program between my parents and therapist's involved with me. I would like to stress that TEACCH was not a miracle cure for autism. But it can reduce the severity of the autism and make a lot of progress along the way. I believe what has helped me the most is catching it early enough and going through some early intervention. You really have to play your part and be supportive which can be very valuable in a child's progress. Everybody's in it together and it's like a team, that's one thing I remember most about the program. After leaving TEACCH It was recommended that I'd be put in special education classes when I got ready to enroll in elementary school and I would remain there until I finished high school. But I was definitely a lot better off than I was when I was diagnosed. I made a lot more progress then expected.

Although I was in special ed. most of my life I participated in regular classes and after school programs. My school was very helpful and supportive in making it possible for me to participate in a classes or programs offered by my school. I played basketball and became team manager until I graduated. I took art and speech classes which I enjoyed very much. After graduating high school I got involved with Vocational Rehab. I spent some time in Talladega studying electronics and then I got a computer and taught myself how to use some of the Microsoft Office Programs. My efforts led me to getting a job and moving out on my own. I worked for a non-profit organization called SEAC (Special Education Action Committee) from 1995 to 1996 as a clerical assistant. Right now, I'm currently employed with the Alabama Dept. Of Rehabilitation Services as a telephone operator. I've been with the agency for four years and it's been a very exciting time for me. I also have a part-time D.J. Business. I moved to Birmingham from Anniston to be on my own and have access to transportation. I've lived successfully on my own for five years.

I've had a wonderful life and I wouldn't change a thing. I would like to just say that learning from these experiences has prepared me for many challenges that came later in my life and It's kept me strong during those times. I would like to thank those who've helped and supported me through it all. If you have a dream, work hard and believe in yourself because I know dreams do come true. Thank you all for being here today and may God bless you in all that you do.