Wake up call

I read an editorial in the Post-Dispatch awhile ago. It was compelling. A mother spoke of the many hardships she endured and obstacles she had to overcome in order to assist her child with special needs. It was heartbreaking and it was a wake-up call. I can't even editoralize it~just take a peek....

12/29/2007 State finally may help autistic kids

Regarding "Autism task force calls for centralizing state services" (Dec. 19): More than six years ago, I sent letters to every representative I could find to beg for specialized day care or respite for my high-functioning autistic child. This was after he had attempted to hang himself at the day care facility we had been forced to use. My son felt he didn't fit in, and the kids were brutal. The day care had promised an aide who was to be funded through a special allocation. Not surprisingly, the money was otherwise allocated, and no aide was supplied. There were no other options for special-needs day care for children ages 5 to 10, and apparently still aren't.
The response I received from our officials was dismal. They were absolutely ambivalent or uninformed. The governor at the time offered to speak with me personally if I had a written solution that I could present to him. As a single mother with a special-needs child and a full-time job, that offer was ludicrous.

My son was in more than 10 day care centers before he could use the services of a local special-needs care program. That program was available only to children ages 10 to 18.

Parents of special-needs children know the terror of leaving a special child with untrained individuals. They face the difficulty of holding a job when every phone call makes you cringe because you have to pick up your child and never bring him back. Schools are ill-prepared for a barrage of children who are as individual as snowflakes and who require a custom education.

It's true that the people who receive the most services are those who scream the loudest. It's sad, but getting the things you need requires time, a phone and the tenacity to call someone over and over. Not everyone has those resources on a daily basis.

I am very interested in what happens through the task-force. For children with autism, we can provide early intervention or we can feed, care and house them throughout their adult life. There will be a lot of autistic adults in the next decade.

Best wishes. I'll be watching.

Susan Rand | St. Peters