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Hello friends and family!
Thank you for visiting Gus’s page!
It was almost five years ago that our battle with autism began. When Gus was eleven months old he was a beautiful, happy, responsive little man. Shortly after his twelve month check up we fought countless infections and sky high fevers. It was at this point that we lost that happy little guy and subsequently found his world immersed in - hand flapping, head shaking, screaming fits and chronic constipation.
We were lost and scrambling to find answers that would bring back that little boy who had so quickly slipped away from us. That fight continues, but the scrambling . . . not so much. We were so lucky to find TACA. This amazing organization replaced our scrambling with hope and in their own way replaced our maze with a roadmap.
At the time we had been told that Gus would probably never talk and that we should prepare to change diapers at age 7. It is impossible to describe a group of people who: from a distance, through a website, with a journey guide and a much needed (and fiercely devoted) community were able to spark our inner "New Yorker" and bring out that response - that when told something couldn’t be done, we would nod and say “thanks for the challenge”. It has been a challenge and with TACA's help we have answered . . . especially Gus.
That said - he was potty trained by 3 ½ and now not only talks up a storm, but argues with his sister in the back seat of the car, tells me "no!" (A LOT), refuses to go to bed by asking for more stories (which he reads!) and fixes the printer when I cannot make it print (most of which are typical behaviors of a six year old!). We have a long way to go, but man!, how far we’ve come!!!
I am so proud to say that not only has TACA given us endless information, resources and support, they have now allowed us to be a part of bringing those resources to Las Vegas. We have started a local chapter here (our first meeting was March 28th), and have been given the opportunity build a stronger autism community and offer that much needed hope to local families.
For more information about TACA visit our website by clicking on the link just below Gus's photo on the left - here you will see how TACA continues to help our family as well as almost 14,000 other families across the country.
We cannot thank you enough for your continued support! As April is Autism Awareness month we are asking for your help so that we can continue to help the families of the 1 in 150 children who are diagnosed with autism -- and don't forget to forward this to anyone who you think might want to donate too!
With love and gratitude,
Courtney, Jason, Gus and Matilda
Donating to this website is simple, fast, completely secure and 100 percent tax-deductible.
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