ZooWalk 2009
Dear family, friends, and everyone else reading this,
Thank you for helping make this year’s ZooWalk for Autism Research a success. Despite the record high temperatures (102!) thousands of people whose lives have been touched by autism gathered together for a fun day with a great cause.
The event raised $120,000.
But really the best part is how this event allows families with children are autistic to come have a fun day at the zoo like a “normal” family without fear of being judged by people unfamiliar with autism.
Pictures! (be sure to check out the tiger 
)
(also, I have new baby Phoenix pictures enjoy!)
One Week!
The time has come again for the annual Zoowalk for Autism at the Phoenix Zoo.
The walk is coordinated by the Arizona State University Autism/Aspergers Research Program and the Autism Research Institute. All funds raised go to these programs. This year, their goal is $150,000 for a study of several autism treatments including diet and nutritional supplements in 100 children and adults with autism.
The walk will be held on Saturday, October 17, 2009 at the Phoenix Zoo. The zoo is closed to all but zoowalkers from 6:30-9am, however participants have access to the zoo the remainder of the day. It is a lot of fun, while raising funds for a great cause at the same time.
To support Seth’s Superheros, go here and select donate to team.
If you have any questions, feel free to ask! I hope to see you there!
Zoowalk for Autism 2009 – Seth’s Superheroes
The time has come again for the annual Zoowalk for Autism at the Phoenix Zoo.
The walk is coordinated by the Arizona State University Autism/Aspergers Research Program and the Autism Research Institute. All funds raised go to these programs. This year, their goal is $150,000 for a study of several autism treatments including diet and nutritional supplements in 100 children and adults with autism.
The walk will be held on Saturday, October 17, 2009 at the Phoenix Zoo. The zoo is closed to all but zoowalkers from 6:30-9am, however participants have access to the zoo the remainder of the day. It is a lot of fun, while raising funds for a great cause at the same time.
To support Seth’s Superheros, go here and select donate to team.
If you have any questions, feel free to ask! I hope to see you there!
April is Autism Awareness Month
Autism is a spectrum disorder that effects 1 out of every 150 kids born this year in the United States; making it more common than any other disorder. Autism is known as a children’s disorder, but it continues through out life.
Persons with autism may also exhibit some of the following traits, however everyone is different, and so their autism may manifest in different ways:
- Insistence on sameness; resistance to change
- Difficulty in expressing needs, using gestures or pointing instead of words
- Repeating words or phrases in place of normal, responsive language
- Laughing (and/or crying) for no apparent reason showing distress for reasons not apparent to others
- Preference to being alone; aloof manner
- Tantrums
- Difficulty in mixing with others
- Not wanting to cuddle or be cuddled
- Little or no eye contact
- Unresponsive to normal teaching methods
- Sustained odd play
- Spinning objects
- Obsessive attachment to objects
- Apparent over-sensitivity or under-sensitivity to pain
- No real fears of danger
- Noticeable physical over-activity or extreme under-activity
- Uneven gross/fine motor skills
- Non responsive to verbal cues; acts as if deaf, although hearing tests in normal range.
An exact cause for autism is not known; however many people connect the childhood MMR vaccination and/or Mercury in the form of the vaccine preseravitive Thimerosal as a trigger. Children do not appear to be born with autism, it usually develops by the age of 2.
Autism Blogs
There aren’t to many things where I take up an activist-type position.
Yes. I think you should rescue, spay/neuter dogs and other pets (unless specifically using them as working dogs).
Yes. I think people should be less careless about the enviroment.
Yes. I try to avoid feedlot, steroid-ed meat.
But, since my cousin was diagnosed with autism, its become very clear that people really don’t know about autism spectrum disorders. You say you know someone who is autistic, and they say “Oh really, what’s that?” Well, considering the current statistics indicate that 1 in 150 American children will be diagnosed with autism, I think that more people should know about autism, not to mention that there needs to be more research about the cause and treatment of autism.
Well, tonight when I was browsing through the wordpress archives, I found a few blogs I liked that are written by the parents of autistic children.
http://lifeasaplatypus.wordpress.com/ Mom of 4 and 2 year old sons, one of whom has autism
http://teenautism.com Mom of a 14 year old son with autism
http://asdmommy.wordpress.com/ Mom of a 7 year old son with autism
http://pardnerlardner.wordpress.com/ Mom with an 18 year old son with autism
ZooWalk – A success!
Thank you all for your support. There were over 250 teams with over 5000 walkers. $130,000 was raised, and they are still collecting donations with a goal of reaching $200,000 by November 20 (www.zoowalk.org)
Here are a few of my 500 
pictures from the day.
Macaw
Giant Anteater
Squirrel Monkeys
Kids and a baboon
Baboon
Giraffe
Autism Research
Hello Readers…
I’ve written about this before, but as the date approaches, I’ll write about it again.
In two and a half weeks I’ll be participating in the annual ZooWalk for Autism Research. I am doing this because I think it is an important issue that not enough people are aware of. However my primary interest lies in my cousin, Seth’s, struggles with autism.
Autism impacts the lives 1 in 150 American children (or roughly 1 in 7 families) and yet there is so little known about how or why or what can be done about this condition.
So, if you can spare a few dollars, please consider donating it to autism research. The link is https://www.ariautism.com/zoowalk/phoenix/teams/Seth’s_Ponies.html
Thank you.
